r    SIDE    IMPROVED 

AND  ITS  aSLATION  TO  AJX  0» 

THE  com:merce  of  the 

POET  OF  NEW  YORK 
H.   A.   C.   SMITH 


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THE  % 

WEST  SIDE   IMPROVEMENT 


AND  ITS  RELATION  TO  ALL  OF 

THE  COMMERCE  OF  THE 
PORT  OF  NEW  YORK 


R.  A.  C.  SMITH 


To 


The  Chamber  of  Commerce  of  the  State  of  New  York, 
The  Merchants^  Association  of  New  York, 
(K-        The  Maritime  Association  of  the  Port  of  New  York, 
^  The  New  York  Board  of  Trade  and  Transportation, 

o  City  Club, 

E  Bronx  Board  of  Trade, 

^  Harlem  Board  of  Commerce, 

Central  Mercantile  Association, 

r  Queens  Borough  Chamber  of  Commerce, 

>  Fifth  Avenue  Association, 

^  Gansevoort  Market  Business  Men's  Association, 

y 

Jamaica  Bay  Association, 

South  Brooklyn  Board  of  Trade, 

Brooklyn  Committee  on  City  Plan, 

Erie  Basin  Board  of  Trade, 

As  a  member  of  a  nmnber  of  your  associations 
and  as  a  citizen  vitally  interested  in  the  welfare 
of  the  City  of  New  York,  I  have  devoted  an  im- 
mense amount  of  time  and  energy  in  working  with 
you  upon  the  various  port  problems  which  have 
come  up  for  solution  from  time  to  time.  In  my 
official  capacity  it  has  been  a  constant  source  of 
satisfaction  to  have  been  able  to  rely  upon  the  sym- 
pathetic assistance  and  advice  of  all  of  you.  Intelhgent 
citizen  co-operation  in  public  problems  by  those  who 
have  had  intimate  experience  along  similar  hnes  in  con- 
nection with  their  own  private  affairs  is  the  most  valu- 
able force  which  a  public  officer  can  have  behind  him. 

No  problem  in  recent  years  has  pressed  more  in- 
sistently for  solution  than  the  disposition  to  be  made  of 
the  West  Side  trackage  of  the  New  York  Central  Rail- 
road.    No  single  element  is  more  important  in  the 

s 


organization  of  the  Port  of  New  York  than  the  all-rail 
freight  service  to  Manhattan  Island  furnished  by  this 
road. 

There  has  been  such  a  confusing  mass  of  conflicting 
statements  with  reference  to  the  proposed  settlement 
under  consideration  by  the  Board  of  Estimate  and 
Apportionment  that  it  is  almost  impossible  for  the 
average  citizen  to  form  an  intelHgent  judgment  even 
where  he  is  possessed  of  the  special  knowledge  of  trans- 
portation problems  which  many  of  your  members  un- 
doubtedly have. 

I  have  therefore  prepared  a  complete  statement  of 
the  situation,  presenting  so  far  as  possible  not  only  the 
arguments  in  favor  of  the  proposed  contract  but  also 
the  more  important  objections  which  have  been  raised 
to  it  from  time  to  time.  It  is  my  hope  that  a  reading 
of  this  statement  will  present  the  essential  facts  in  such 
form  that  an  intelligent  judgment  can  be  based  upon 
them.  I  feel  strongly  that  if  the  important  commercial 
interests  in  the  Port  of  New  York  realized  fully  the 
gravity  of  the  transportation  crisis  which  would  result 
through  failure  to  reach  a  correct  solution  of  the  New 
York  Central  problem  that  there  would  be  the  most 
active  public  interest  concerning  it. 

The  official  reports  necessarily  do  not  cover  the  sub- 
ject primarily  from  the  standpoint  of  its  relation  to  the 
general  port  problem.  It  has  therefore  seemed  worth 
while  to  attempt  to  treat  the  matter  in  comprehensive 
form  in  order  to  emphasize  its  commercial  side  and  its 
relation  to  the  future  prosperity  of  the  entire  Port. 

R.  A.  C.  Smith. 
August,  1916. 


THE  WEST  SIDE  IMPROVEMENT 

rpHE  modernization  and  improvement  of  the  freight 
tracks  of  the  New  York  Central  Raih-oad  now 
under  consideration  by  the  Board  of  Estimate  and  Ap- 
portionment upon  the  report  of  its  Committee  on  Port 
and  Terminal  Facilities,  is  a  project  which  vitally  affects 
the  commercial  welfare  of  the  Port  of  New  York,  and  in 
no  small  measure  the  prosperity  of  the  State  and  the  Na- 
tion. An  examination  of  the  objections  which  have  been 
raised  to  it,  however,  and  of  the  reasons  urged  upon  the 
City  for  rejecting  the  proposed  settlement  shows  not  the 
slightest  realization  by  the  public  of  this  fact.  Anyone 
unfamiliar  with  the  problem  would  gather  from  the  ob- 
jections raised  that  the  Board  of  Estimate  was  consid- 
ering a  purely  local  matter,  the  chief  feature  of  which 
was  the  landscape  treatment  of  Riverside  Park. 

The  aesthetic  features  of  the  plan  are  important  and 
at  no  time  do  I  mean  to  minimize  them,  but  no  fair 
estimate  of  the  question  will  make  them  paramount  and 
as  a  matter  of  fact  the  real  difficulty  in  solving  the 
aesthetic  features  exists  in  the  diversified  opinion  on  the 
many  plans  suggested  by  the  landscape  experts  for  the 
perpetuation  and  improvement  of  the  natural  landscape 
features. 

Three  years'  study  as  Commissioner  of  Docks, 
charged  with  the  administrative  direction  of  the  largest 
port  in  the  world,  following  a  lifetime  of  active  partici- 


pation  in  its  commercial  life,  has  convinced  me  that  our 
citizens  generally  are  not  awake  to  the  very  serious  posi- 
tion in  which  our  commerce  has  been  placed  through  neg- 
lect of  our  terminal  organization.  The  City's  magnifi- 
cent harbor  and  waterways  have  presented  the  oppor- 
tunity and  occasion  for  our  commercial  supremacy.  At 
the  same  time,  by  the  barrier  which  they  present  to  rail 
connection  with  the  rest  of  the  country,  they  have  made  it 
necessary  to  work  out  some  adequate  plan  for  rcHeving 
our  commerce  of  disadvantages  which  rest  upon  it,  due 
to  the  impossibility  of  providing  the  type  of  terminal 
organization  which  is  readily  obtainable  in  other  places. 
The  City  has  gone  bhndly  ahead  year  after  year,  relying 
upon  its  natural  advantages  and  ignoring  or  making  but 
slight  effort  to  overcome  its  natural  disabihties. 

There  has  been  a  constantly  increasing  burden  upon 
the  merchants  and  manufacturers  of  the  City,  particu- 
larly in  the  Borough  of  Manhattan,  which  has  been 
borne  with  surprising  patience,  but  which  must  sooner 
or  later  be  lifted  or  avoided  by  locating  in  other  places. 

The  New  York  Central  is  the  only  one  of  the  trunk 
line  railroads  which  reaches  the  Borough  of  Manhattan 
by  an  all-rail  route ;  the  other  railroads  have  their  main 
freight  terminals  on  the  New  Jersey  side  of  the  Hudson 
river  and  hghter  Manhattan  freight  to  waterside  sta- 
tions on  car  floats.  This  service  at  the  present  time  is 
absorbed  in  the  through  rate  through  the  creation  of 
"  free  lighterage  limits  "  which  extend  on  the  North 
River  from  the  Battery  to  135th  street,  on  the  East 
River  from  the  Battery  to  Jerome  Avenue  Bridge,  in- 
cluding the  Harlem  River  side  of  Wards  and  Randalls 
Islands,  and  on  the  Brooklyn  and  Queens  shores  from 
Pot  Cove,  Astoria,  to  67th  street.  Bay  Ridge,  including 


Newtown  Creek,  Dutch  Kills  and  parts  of  Wallabout 
and  of  Gowanus  Canals. 

There  is  now  pending  before  the  Interstate  Com- 
merce Commission  a  petition  brought  by  the  New  Jer- 
sey Board  of  Commerce  and  Navigation  to  compel  the 
railroads  to  make  the  basic  rate  not  to  the  Port  of  New 
York,  but  to  end  the  through  rate  on  the  New  Jer- 
sey shore  and  add  to  all  New  York  shipments  the  cost 
of  the  lighterage  service.  The  4th  Annual  Report  of 
the  New  Jersey  Commission  contains  the  following  in- 
teresting statement  quoted  from  the  Secretary  of  the 
Newark  Board  of  Trade: 

"If  we  could  compel  a  rearrangement  of 
rates  whereby  Newark  and  adjacent  territories 
would  have  a  rate  separate  from  New  York, 
New  York  being  forced  to  pay  an  additional  rate 
to  cover  the  cost  of  lighterage,  we  would  soon  see 
all  of  our  adjacent  undeveloped  land  improved 
and  built  upon,  and  in  my  judgment  it  would 
force  the  development  of  Newark  Bay  and  make 
it  what  it  ought  to  be,  a  real  seaport  and  a  very 
important  one  at  that." 

Whether  the  proceeding  is  successful  or  not,  it  shows 
clearly  a  danger  which  the  shippers  of  New  York  will 
be  continually  called  upon  to  face,  unless  there  be  some 
plan  worked  out  for  their  protection. 

The  only  really  effective  defense  wliich  the  City  can 
employ  is  to  make  it  the  selfish  object  of  the  various 
trunk  Hne  railroads  to  improve  their  service  to  the  City 
of  New  York.  If  these  railroads  can  be  assured  of 
seciu-ing  the  same  amount  of  tonnage  whether  they  haul 
from  the  east  or  the  west  side  of  the  Hudson  River, 


there  is  no  reason  to  believe  that  they  will  be  particularly 
interested  in  continuing  to  assume  the  added  burden  of 
free  lighterage,  or  in  making  the  capital  outlay  for  all 
rail  connection  and  improved  New  York  terminals. 

It  is  safe  to  assume  that  all  of  them  are  willing  to 
shift  as  much  of  the  burden  of  terminal  service  as  pos- 
sible to  the  shipper.  Even  to-day  one  of  the  chief  rea- 
sons why  the  lighterage  is  absorbed  in  the  through  rate 
is  the  ability  of  the  New  York  Central  Railroad  to  reach 
Manhattan  bv  direct  rail  connection. 

Incredible  as  it  may  appear,  there  are  persons  so 
shortsighted  that  they  do  not  recognize  this  perfectly 
obvious  fact  and  apparently  would  welcome  the  aban- 
donment and  removal  of  the  New  York  Central's  west 
side  tracks. 

Aside  from  the  purely  local  importance  of  the  west 
side  terminal  system  its  direct  relation  to  the  prosperity 
of  the  State  and  Nation  is  equally  obvious.  As  Presi- 
dent Loree  of  the  Delaware  and  Hudson,  pointed  out 
in  a  verv  able  address  before  the  Chamber  of  Commerce 
during  its  consideration  of  the  matter,  the  commerce  of 
the  State  of  New  York  is  peculiarly  circumscribed  by 
the  topography  of  the  State.  Over  80  per  cent,  of  the 
population  of  the  State  is  confined  within  a  belt  ten 
miles  wide  extending  up  the  Hudson  and  through  the 
Mohawk  Valley.  At  least  as  great  a  percentage  of  the 
State's  commerce  is  confined  within  the  same  area.  The 
New  York  Central  Railroad  is  the  one  rail  line  equipped 
to  serve  this  territory  and  the  service  which  it  is  in  a  posi- 
tion to  give  is,  therefore,  directly  reflected  in  the  pros- 
perity of  practically  the  entire  State. 


Turning  for  a  moment  from  the  consideration  of 
the  purely  commercial  side  of  the  problem  and  look- 
ing at  it  from  the  standpoint  of  national  defense,  it 
is  of  the  greatest  importance  that  a  railroad  occupy- 
ing the  strategic  position  of  the  New  York  Central 
should  be  in  a  position  to  serve  the  needs  of  the 
United  States  Government  in  time  of  war.  Tapping, 
as  it  does,  a  tremendously  important  source  of  the 
supply  of  food  and  industrial  products  it  would  be 
of  the  greatest  importance  to  facilitate  their  prompt 
delivery  to  the  port  which  everyone  admits  would  un- 
doubtedly be  the  most  important  center  of  defence  and 
attack  in  the  event  of  foreign  war.  For  the  purpose  of 
the  present  discussion  this  of  course  is  a  purely  collat- 
eral matter,  but  it  is  one  which  is  now  receiving  the 
earnest  consideration  and  attention  of  the  War  Depart- 
ment of  the  United  States  and  one  which  the  public 
generally  can  very  easily  overlook. 

No  railroad  is  stronger  than  its  terminals.  The  effi- 
ciency of  the  entire  main  line  is  almost  wholly  depen- 
dent upon  the  convenience  and  dispatch  with  which  the 
business  can  be  handled  in  and  out  of  the  terminals.  In 
fact  since  public  regulation  has  practically  prevented 
competition  in  rates  between  the  various  railroads,  the 
only  really  important  competitive  element  left  is  the  at- 
traction of  business  through  ability  to  handle  it  with 
dispatch  at  terminal  points. 

Considering  the  New  York  Central's  present  freight 
tracks  from  the  City  line  to  St.  John's  Park  as  the 
metropolitan  terminal  for  the  commerce  of  the  wonder- 
ful rail  system  which  leads  from  it,  it  must  be  apparent 
even  to  the  most  inexperienced  layman  that  it  is  gro- 
tesquely inadequate.    So  long  as  it  remains  in  this  con- 

9 


dition  there  is  but  slight  incentive  for  the  other  railroads 
either  to  improve  their  waterside  stations  or  to  spend 
the  necessary  capital  for  the  establishment  of  new  ter- 
minal facilities. 

The  New  York  Central  freight  system  as  at  present 
operated  consists  of  a  two-track  main  line  some  fifteen 
miles  in  length.  It  enters  the  Borough  of  Manhattan 
across  a  low  drawbridge  at  the  Harlem  Ship  Canal  -with 
a  clearance  so  small  that  it  must  be  opened  for  practi- 
cally all  traffic.  The  road  extends  along  the  shore  of  the 
Hudson  River  to  an  antiquated  and  inadequate  yard  in 
the  Manhattan  Valley  which  attempts  to  serve  the  large 
and  growing  commercial  needs  of  the  Harlem  district  of 
Manhattan.  How  wretchedly  inadequate  that  service 
is,  is  testified  to  by  all  of  the  commercial  organizations 
in  the  upper  part  of  Manhattan.  The  main  hne  con- 
tinues across  the  surface  of  streets  in  the  Manhattan 
Valley,  with  dangerous  grade  crossings,  and  runs  thence 
along  the  shore  front  of  Riverside  Park  to  72d 
street.  The  nuisance  which  its  operation  has  always  been 
to  the  valuable  adjoining  property  in  the  Riverside  sec- 
tion is  too  well-known  to  require  discussion.  In  fact  it 
has  localized  public  opinion  to  such  an  extent  that  the 
chief  public  consideration  given  to  plans  for  the  improve- 
ment of  the  line  is  centered  upon  this  section.  Between 
72d  street  and  59th  street  the  railroad  maintains  an  ex- 
tensive yard  served  by  piers  and  float  bridges.  This 
yard  is  poorly  arranged  and  completely  outgrown,  with 
resultant  delay  and  inefficiency  in  the  handhng  of 
freight.  From  59th  street  to  30th  street  and  between 
30th  street  and  Hudson  and  Varick  streets  the  tracks 
run  upon  the  pubHc  streets  of  the  City,  an  intolerable 
condition  from  the  standpoint  of  the  pubhc  using  the 

10 


streets  and  almost  completely  destructive  of  efficient 
railroad  operation.  At  30th  street  and  at  St.  John's 
Park  the  railroad  maintains  terminals  which  are  equally 
as  obsolete  and  outgrown  as  the  60th  street  yard. 

The  entire  road  is  operated  by  steam,  the  regulation 
type  of  locomotive  being  used  as  far  south  as  30th  street, 
and  dummy  engines  being  employed  between  30th  street 
and  the  southerly  terminus. 

This  in  brief  outhne  is  the  existing  situation.  It  is 
no  new  problem.  The  report  of  the  PubHc  Service  Com- 
mission for  1907  includes  this  significant  statement: 

"  For  many  years  the  situation  has  been  grow- 
ing worse  and  worse ;  children  are  killed ;  needed 
streets  are  rendered  almost  impassible,  traffic  is 
constantly  impeded  by  freight  trains,  and  a  large 
portion  of  an  important  section  of  the  City  finds 
its  progress  retarded." 

The  matter  has  been  officially  before  various  local  au- 
thorities since  the  passage  of  the  so-called  "  Saxe  Law  " 
(Laws  of  1906,  Chapter  109),  which  attempted  to  deal 
with  it  through  the  Board  of  Rapid  Transit  Commis- 
sioners. It  has  been  before  the  Board  of  Estimate  since 
the  passage  of  Chapter  777  of  the  Laws  of  1911,  which  is 
the  statute  under  which  the  plans  now  before  the  Board 
of  Estimate  for  consideration  and  approval  have  been 
prepared.  No  matter  has  received  more  earnest  and  con- 
tinuous study  by  public  officials  and  engineering  and 
legal  experts  for  a  period  extending  over  more  than  ten 
years.  Prior  to  that  study  and  in  connection  with  it  there 
has  been  an  immense  amount  of  consideration  of  the 
problem  by  private  individuals  and  civic  organizations, 
so  that  with  the  mass  of  information  which  has  been  col- 
li 


lected  and  presented  in  various  official  and  unofficial  re- 
ports and  documents  there  was  available  in  connection 
with  the  preparation  of  the  present  plan  now  before  the 
Board  of  Estimate,  a  body  of  valuable  information  sel- 
dom equalled  even  in  a  matter  of  such  importance. 

Before  presenting  the  details  of  the  present  plan  I 
shall  outline  briefly  the  various  suggestions  which  have 
been  made  from  time  to  time  for  the  organization  and 
development  of  the  west  side  waterfront  of  the  Borough 
of  Manhattan,  in  order  that  those  who  have  not  had  an 
opportunity  to  follow  the  matter  in  all  of  its  phases  may 
have  before  them  in  concrete  and  sunmiarv  form,  the 
whole  question  of  the  organization  of  this  portion  of  the 
Port  of  Xew  York  and  the  effect  of  the  adoption  of  the 
pending  Xew  York  Central  improvement  plan  upon  the 
ultimate  reorganization  of  this  territory. 


12 


II 

THE    WEST     SIDE     WATERFRONT     AND 
SUGGESTED  PLANS  FOR  ITS  RE- 
ORGANIZATION 

fT^HE  Manhattan  shore  of  the  Hudson  River  from 
the  Batterv  to  59th  street,  is  the  most  valuable  and 
intensively  used  portion  of  the  Port  of  New  York,  which 
is  equivalent  to  saying  that  it  is  the  most  important  and 
valuable  port  waterfront  section  in  the  United  States. 
It  produces  gross  annual  revenues  to  the  City  of  New 
York  of  over  $2,500,000.  Approximately  forty  per 
cent,  of  this  section  is  occupied  under  lease  by  the  vari- 
ous trunk  line  railroads,  all  of  which,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  the  New  York  Central,  have  their  main  terminals 
in  New  Jersey.  The  Manhattan  piers  are  occupied  by 
them  as  waterfront  freight  stations,  to  which  once  a  day 
a  vast  floating  freight  yard  is  brought  from  New  Jersey 
terminals  on  car  floats.  The  ruling  practice  is  to  hold 
these  floats  at  the  Manhattan  piers  until  the  cars  are 
unloaded  by  hand  trucks,  and  as  soon  as  possible  to 
reload  the  cars  with  outgoing  freight  prior  to  dragging 
the  entire  j^ard  back  to  the  New  Jersey  side. 

The  upland  back  of  the  Manhattan  piers  has  been 
developed  by  the  building  of  a  marginal  way,  180  feet 
in  width  and  a  public  street  known  as  West  street,  70 
feet  in  width,  making  the  entire  available  street  and 
bulkhead  area  back  of  the  piers  250  feet  in  width.  It 
has  been  the  practice  to  permit  the  construction  of  bulk- 
head sheds  upon  the  outshore  fifty  feet  of  the  marginal 

13 


way,  and  it  is  in  these  bulkhead  sheds  and  in  the  sheds 
covering  the  piers  that  the  entire  Manhattan  freight 
business  of  the  majority  of  the  New  Jersey  railroads  is 
carried  on.  In  addition  to  the  actual  transshipment  of 
freight  through  these  sheds,  the  practice  of  allowing  a 
certain  amount  of  free  storage  time  has  made  it  neces- 
sary to  use  a  very  large  portion  of  the  shedded  area 
for  warehouse  purposes.  Careful  studies  of  the  freight 
movement  at  Manhattan  piers  showed  that  practically 
all  of  the  incoming  business  is  handled  in  between  two 
and  three  hours  in  the  morning,  and  that  the  outgoing 
business  occupies  a  similar  period  in  the  late  afternoon. 
At  least  two  thousand  cars  per  day  are  handled  in  and 
out  of  these  Manhattan  waterside  stations. 

The  necessity  for  dispatching  the  business  within 
very  limited  periods  of  high  congestion  morning  and 
evening,  combined  with  the  cramped  conditions  under 
which  freight  is  handled  over  the  piers  and  through  the 
bulkhead  sheds,  has  produced  a  condition  which  places 
a  most  serious  burden  upon  the  shippers  of  the  City. 
West  street  and  the  marginal  way  are  at  times  crowded 
with  trucks  to  a  point  where  it  is  impossible  to  reach  the 
freight  stations  without  intolerable  and  expensive  de- 
lays. Testimony  which  appears  entirely  rehable  has 
been  taken  by  a  number  of  commissions  which  have  in- 
vestigated the  subject  to  the  effect  that  several  hours 
delay  in  waiting  for  a  chance  to  receive  or  deliver  freight 
is  no  unconmion  occurrence,  and  that  the  actual  cost  to 
the  New  York  shipper  of  getting  freight  to  and  from 
the  waterside  stations  is  frequently  equal  to  or  in  excess 
of  rail  service  as  far  west  as  Buffalo. 

Part  of  the  difficulty  has  been  due  to  the  inadequacy 
of  the  railroad  piers,  most  of  which  were  designed  of  the 

14 


Page  15,  6th  line  from  top  should  read: 

"  Lehigh  Valley  Railroad  Company  "  and  not  Dela- 
ware, Lackawanna  &  Western  Railroad. 


1 


) 


type  commonly  used  by  water-borne  commerce  and 
without  particular  reference  to  railroad  uses.  This  con- 
dition the  Dock  Department  has  sought  to  aid  in  cor- 
recting as  far  as  possible.  Two  new  piers,  Nos.  8  and 
9,  have  recently  been  built  under  arrangement  with  the 
Delaware,  Lackawanna  and  Western  Railroad  and  the 
Central  Railroad  of  New  Jersey,  and  are  admirably 
adapted  for  the  prompt  handling  of  rail  business.  Ne- 
gotiations are  under  way  for  the  widening  of  one  of  the 
Pennsylvania  piers  so  as  to  permit  the  separation  of  in- 
going and  outgoing  streams  of  traffic  and  make  room  for 
the  proper  classification  of  freight. 

Part  of  the  difficulty  also  has  been  the  necessity  of 
using  the  marginal  wharf  for  the  temporary  storage  of 
goods  in  transit.  In  the  past  this  use  has  been  but 
sHghtly  regulated  and  the  privilege  consequently 
abused.  The  Dock  Department  is  engaged  in  working 
out  plans  for  a  continuous  bulkhead  awning  shed  which 
will  take  care  of  the  necessary  overflow  from  the  piers 
and  bulkheads,  and  will  at  the  same  time  cause  the  small- 
est possible  encroachment  upon  street  area  much  needed 
for  waterside  traffic. 

Some  of  the  railroads  have  partially  met  the  situa- 
tion by  the  estabhshment  of  inshore  stations  which  are 
directly  connected  with  the  bulkhead  through  tracks 
leading  to  float  bridges.  The  station  estabhshed  by  the 
Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroad  at  26th  street  is  the  most 
notable  example  of  this  type  of  development. 

There  is  practically  no  freight  brought  to  the  Man- 
hattan waterside  stations  for  transshipment;  it  i«  rnade 
up  almost  entirely  of  food  products  and  other  n 
for  direct  consumption  in  the  Borough  of  Manh 

15 


Although  the  waterfront  is  as  intensively  used  as 
any  portion  of  the  entire  City,  there  has  been  a  curious 
stagnation  in  the  development  of  upland  property  on 
West  street.  The  favorable  position  of  this  property 
would  naturally  indicate  its  development  as  a  high 
type  of  warehouse  and  industrial  district.  As  a  matter 
of  fact  it  has  remained  unimproved  to  the  great  detri- 
ment of  the  City,  and  has  neither  benefitted  by  the  vast 
volume  of  waterfront  commerce  nor  contributed  to  its 
efficient  handling. 

This  situation  has  attracted  the  attention  of  all  who 
have  investigated  the  problem  and  most  of  the  various 
plans  which  have  been  put  forward  for  the  reorganiza- 
tion and  development  of  the  west  side  waterfront  have 
had  as  one  of  their  important  elements,  the  utilization 
of  property  in  the  belt  between  the  east  side  of  West 
street  and  Ninth  avenue.  It  has  usually  been  proposed 
to  accomplish  this  by  some  plan  for  transferring  the 
railroad  cars,  which  now  are  allowed  to  lie  at  the  piers, 
to  some  form  of  inland  terminal  station. 

The  various  reorganization  plans  which  have  been 
advanced  from  time  to  time  fall  into  three  classes,  all 
of  which  have  necessarily  considered  the  treatment  of 
the  New  York  Central  west  side  tracks  as  part  of  the 
problem : 

(1)  Those  which  proposed  some  form  of  through 
rail  service  along  the  marginal  way,  to  be  used  by  all 
of  the  railroads,  including  the  New  York  Central.  It 
has  usually  been  proposed  that  this  railroad  should  be 
owned  by  the  City  of  New  York,  and  that  in  the  event 
of  failure  of  the  various  railroads  to  use  it  voluntarily 
that  there  should  be  a  certain  amount  of  compulsion 

16 


exercised  by  the  City  through  refusal  to  renew  leases 
of  the  waterside  stations. 

( 2 )  Those  which  proposed  the  discontinuance  of  the 
through  rail  service  of  the  New  York  Central  to  points 
south  of  30th  street  and  suggested  the  development 
either  of  joint  union  inshore  terminals  at  various  points 
or  some  form  of  store-door  delivery  to  be  operated 
jointly  by  the  railroads  or  by  an  independent  company. 

(3)  Those  plans  which  have  proposed  a  separate 
and  independent  treatment  of  the  trackage  of  the  New 
York  Central  and  the  improvement  and  development  of 
the  Manhattan  terminals  of  the  other  railroads  from 
time  to  time  as  conditions  would  permit. 

In  1908  a  committee  of  the  Merchants'  Association, 
of  which  Mr.  Walter  C.  Kerr  was  chairman,  proposed 
that  the  City  should 

"  construct  on  West  street  and  such  part  of  the 
marginal  way  as  may  be  necessary  a  freight  rail- 
way viaduct  of  two  tracks  capacity,  or  a  freight 
and  passenger  railway  viaduct  of  four  tracks 
from  a  point  at  or  near  Battery  place  to  the 
freight  yards  of  the  New  York  Central  and 
Hudson  River  Railroad  Co.,  at  59th  street,  this 
viaduct  to  follow  the  route  of  West  street  for  its 
whole  length." 

It  was  proposed  that  this  viaduct  should  be  used 
both  by  the  New  York  Central  and  by  the  other  rail- 
roads, and  that,  when  constructed,  the  surface  tracks  of 
the  New  York  Central  should  be  removed.  It  was  pro- 
posed that  warehouses  should  be 

"  constructed  along  the  waterfront,  either  on  the 
marginal  way  or  nearby,  from  time  to  time  as 

17 


demanded  by  the  growth  and  character  of  com- 
merce, to  the  end  that  trucking  to  and  from  ware- 
houses remote  from  the  riverfront  may  be  re- 
duced to  a  minimum." 

In  July,  1910,  my  predecessor  advanced  a  somewhat 
similar  plan,  but  without  provision  for  warehouses  on 
the  marginal  way.  As  ultimately  developed,  this  plan 
called  for  a  four-track  elevated  road  from  Fulton  street 
to  60th  street.  It  was  proposed  that  the  entire  water- 
front between  30th  street  and  40th  street  should  be  de- 
veloped with  a  battery  of  thirty-six  float  bridges  and 
that  all  of  the  railroads  should  be  compelled  to  concen- 
trate their  floating  at  this  point.  It  was  suggested  that 
if  the  selfish  interests  of  the  railroads  did  not  lead  them 
to  accept  the  plan  that  the  City  might  gradually  exer- 
cise compulsion  through  its  control  of  waterfront  leases. 

The  purpose  sought  to  be  accomplished  by  these  two 
plans  was  to  remove  the  terminal  business  as  far  as  pos- 
sible from  the  piers  and  transfer  it  inshore,  utilizing 
public  streets  for  running  tracks  and  property  to  the 
east  for  terminal  stations  and  industrial  plants.  There 
are  difliculties  and  objections  to  both  of  these  plans 
which  apply  equally  to  any  scheme  for  a  joint  railroad 
along  the  west  side  of  Manhattan  which,  in  my  opinion, 
make  it  unwise  of  adoption. 

In  the  first  place,  the  New  Jersey  railroads  are  un- 
animous in  their  unwillingness  to  consider  operating 
over  such  a  line.  It  is  conceded  even  by  the  proponents 
of  a  joint  elevated  plan  that  for  a  considerable  period  of 
j'^ears  it  would  be  necessary  to  continue  the  floating  of 
cars  across  the  Hudson  river.  The  use  of  rail  terminal 
facihties  on  the  Manhattan  side  under  these  conditions 

18 


would  simply  mean,  so  far  as  the  railroads  are  con- 
cerned, an  additional  terminal  cost  which  would  in  all 
probability  not  be  reflected  in  a  corresponding  increase 
of  revenue. 

In  addition  to  the  through  line  running  tracks  a  rail- 
road must  have  storage  and  classification  yards,  ter- 
minal stations  and  switching  accommodations.  One  has 
only  to  observe  conditions  on  the  New  Jersey  water- 
front of  New  York  harbor  to  see  what  this  means. 
To  provide  these  in  the  Borough  of  Manhattan  to  the  ex- 
tent necessary  were  all  the  railroads  to  join  in  the  opera- 
tion of  such  an  elevated  line  would  mean  a  tremendous 
overhead  terminal  cost  which  would  necessarily  ulti- 
mately be  shifted  to  the  shipper. 

The  operating  difficulties  in  connection  with  such  a 
scheme  are  very  great.  If  floating  is  to  be  continued  it 
means,  as  pointed  out  in  my  predecessor's  report,  the 
establishment  of  a  float-bridge  area  at  least  half  a  mile 
in  length.  Owing  to  the  compression  of  train  movement 
within  a  short  period,  both  morning  and  evening,  there 
would  result  a  point  of  congestion  which  would  inevit- 
ably slow  up  the  movement  of  cars  in  and  out  of  Man- 
hattan. As  has  been  frequently  pointed  out,  such  a  float 
bridge  installation  would  provide  what  would  in  effect 
be  similar  to  the  neck  of  a  bottle,  limiting  the  capacity 
of  the  entire  line.  The  difficulty  of  reaching  an  elevated 
structure  with  a  clearance  of  fourteen  feet  from  float 
bridges  at  the  water  level  would  be  very  great.  To  con- 
centrate floating  to  the  point  in  the  harbor  suggested  by 
Mr.  Tomkins  would  greatly  increase  the  length  of  the 
lighterage  haul  for  practically  all  of  the  railroads.  It  is 
suggested  that  the  continuance  of  floating  would  be  a 
temporary  matter   and  that   eventually   the   elevated 

19 


structure  would  be  served  either  by  bridge  or  tunnel. 
Under  either  the  bridge  or  tunnel  plan  the  difference  in 
grade  between  the  point  of  entry  into  Manhattan  and 
the  elevated  structure  would  be  materially  increased 
over  the  float  bridge  scheme,  and  it  either  would  mean 
an  almost  prohibitive  operating  grade  or  extremely  long 
and  expensive  approaches.  It  is  only  necessary  to  point 
out  that  with  very  heavy  freight  trains  operating  officials 
demand  a  grade  not  exceeding  one  per  cent,  to  indicate 
the  extent  of  the  necessary  approach  structures  under 
either  a  bridge  or  tunnel  plan. 

The  undesirabiHty  of  bringing  the  freight  car  into 
Manhattan  and  handling  it  on  the  upland,  was  recog- 
nized in  a  plan  advanced  in  1908  by  Mr.  W.  J.  Wilgus, 
a  former  chief  engineer  of  the  New  York  Central  Rail- 
road. He  proposed  a  small  bore  subway  constructed 
under  the  sidewalks  and  running  from  classification 
yards  in  New  Jersey  under  the  Hudson  river  by  tunnel 
and  around  Manhattan  in  the  form  of  a  belt  line.  He 
suggested  that  freight  be  transshipped  in  a  New  Jersey 
classification  yard  and  loaded  for  destination  in  small 
cars  which  could  be  operated  through  the  proposed  sub- 
way in  such  a  way  as  to  aproximate  store-door  dehvery 
to  consumers. 

One  of  the  serious  objections  to  the  plan  was  the  fact 
that  a  certain  percentage,  estimated  by  Mr.  Wilgus  him- 
self at  ten  per  cent.,  of  freight  reaching  ]Manhattan  was 
too  bulky  to  pass  through  the  subway  as  projected.  The 
breaking  of  bulk  before  delivery  was  the  second  feature 
of  the  plan  which  would  have  placed  an  additional  cost 
upon  transportation.  Mr.  Wilgus  proposed  as  part 
of  his  plan  that  lower  Manhattan  service  by  the  New 
York  Central  be  discontinued,  although  he  did  not  indi- 

20 


cate  how  he  proposes  that  this  shall  be  done.  The  plan 
was  submitted  to  the  Public  Service  Commission  of  the 
First  District,  but  no  official  action  was  ever  taken  con- 
cerning it. 

In  April,  1913,  there  was  presented  for  the  con- 
sideration of  the  Board  of  Estimate  and  Apportionment 
an  elaborate  plan  designed  by  a  Mr.  D.  C.  Willoughby 
pro\dding  for  a  six-track  subway  along  the  marginal  way 
from  30th  street  to  Cortlandt  street  and  connected  by 
tunnel  with  New  Jersey.  He  proposed  to  construct  on 
the  marginal  way  directly  over  the  subway  huge  terminal 
buildings  100  x  750  feet  and  9  stories  in  height, 
adaptable  for  warehouse  and  manufacturing  purposes, 
the  earnings  from  these  structures  to  counterbalance  the 
loss  on  railroad  operation  and  provide  a  margin  of 
profit.  Mr.  Willoughby  was  not  able  to  satisfy  the 
Board  of  Estimate  and  Apportionment  that  he  was  in  a 
position  to  finance  this  plan  and  consequently  no  serious 
consideration  was  given  to  it. 

In  1911  the  Board  of  Estimate  and  Apportionment 
appointed  a  committee  of  engineers  consisting  of  Mr. 
E.  P.  Goodrich,  Mr.  H.  P.  Nichols,  and  Mr.  E.  C. 
Moore  to  study  the  situation.  The  majority  of  this 
Committee,  consisting  of  Mr.  Goodrich  and  Mr. 
Nichols,  reconmiended  the  discontinuance  of  operation 
by  the  New  York  Central  at  30th  street  and  the  estab- 
hshment  of 

"  a  number  of  what  may  be  termed  '  combination 
freight  terminals  '  or  '  unit  terminals.'  " 
As  explained  in  the  Committee's  report,  each  termi- 
nal was  to 

"  consist  of  a  new  type  of  double  decked  pier  con- 
taining two  float  bridges,  and  a  terminal  building 

21 


on  the  easterly  side  of  the  water  front  street ;  the 
pier  and  building  to  be  connected  at  the  second 
story  level  by  a  bridge  or  trestle  across  the  water- 
front street.  Upon  the  pier  will  be  hauling 
tracks,  a  "  switch  back,"  and  a  ramp  to  elevate 
the  cars  to  the  second  story,  in  order  that  they 
may  not  cross  the  intervening  street  at  grade; 
also  sidings  for  direct  truck  delivery  at  street 
and  second  story  levels,  and  storage  tracks  for 
cars  on  the  second  floor.  The  terminal  building 
will  provide  on  the  first  story  for  truck  dehvery, 
on  the  second  for  car  delivery,  and  upon  the 
upper  stories  for  storage — all  connected  by 
elevators,  and  the  first  and  second  stories  by 
gravity  chutes." 

It  was  proposed  that  each  combination  terminal 

**  be  operated  by  a  single  road  or  jointly  by  two 
or  three,  or  by  a  private  terminal  company  in  a 
manner  identical  with  the  existing  private  termi- 
nals in  the  harbor." 

The  third  member  of  the  Committee  disagreed  vrith 
this  proposed  solution  and  favored  the  construction  of 
an  elevated  along  the  marginal  way. 

The  unit  terminal  plan  did  not  meet  with  a  favor- 
able reception  either  by  the  railroads  or  from  the  ship- 
pers generally.  It  was  recognized  that  operation  in  the 
manner  proposed  would  be  difficult  and  expensive  and 
that  it  would  not  furnish  a  service  sufficiently  superior 
to  what  could  be  accomplished  by  improving  the  water- 
side stations  to  justify  the  experiment.  At  the  same 
time  it  must  be  remembered  that  while  it  is  easy  to  sug- 
gest the  discontinuance  of  operation  by  the  New  York 

22 


Central  at  30th  street,  there  is  apparently  no  power  to 
compel  the  stopping  of  operation  at  any  point  north  of 
the  southern  limit  of  the  Company's  franchise.  It  is 
also  a  very  grave  question  as  to  whether  it  would  not 
be  extremely  unwise  to  discontinue  through  rail  opera- 
tion even  assuming  it  were  feasible  to  do  so.  Very 
large  and  important  business  interests  have  grown  up 
in  reliance  upon  the  through  rail  service  furnished  by 
the  New  York  Central.  It  is  only  necessary  to  mention 
such  a  concern  as  the  National  Biscuit  Co.,  which  has 
enormous  factories  directly  served  by  the  tracks  of  the 
New  York  Central  to  indicate  how  serious  it  would  be 
to  discontinue  these  tracks.  The  imit  terminal  plan  was 
considered  carefully  by  the  Board  of  Estimate  and 
Apportionment,  but  was  eventually  abandoned  as  an 
unsatisfactory  solution. 

There  remains  for  consideration  those  plans  which 
have  dealt  with  the  New  York  Central  situation  as  a 
problem  which  could  be  solved  very  largely  indepen- 
dently of  the  questions  connected  with  the  general  rail- 
road occupation  of  the  west  side  waterfront. 

It  must  be  remembered  in  considering  any  adjust- 
ment of  the  New  York  Central  that  certain  conditions 
are  present  which  make  it  very  largely  a  separate  and 
independent  problem.  In  the  first  place,  the  New  York 
Central  possesses  franchises  which  are  apparently  un- 
questionably valid.  It  has  already  in  its  possession 
yard  spaces  which  make  it  possible  for  it  to  operate 
tracks  in  the  lower  part  of  Manhattan  without  the  neces- 
sity of  encroaching  on  new  land  areas,  wliich  can  be 
used  to  better  advantage,  to  say  nothing  of  their  ex- 
pense.  Most  important  of  all,  it  is  in  a  position  to  fur- 

23 


nish  through  rail  service  without  the  necessity  of  con- 
structing bridges  or  tunnels  over  the  Hudson  River. 

Official  attempts  to  improve  operating  conditions  on 
the  New  York  Central's  tracks  were  begun  in  1906  with 
the  passage  of  the  so-called  "  Saxe  Law,"  Chapter  109 
of  the  Laws  of  1906  already  referred  to.  The  motive 
beliind  this  legislation  and  the  public  interest  concern- 
ing it  lay  not  in  the  development  of  the  west  side  track- 
age as  a  more  efficient  commercial  machine,  but  in  the 
desire  of  the  public  generally  to  eliminate  the  dangers 
of  operation  through  public  streets  at  grade.  In  other 
words,  consideration  of  the  New  York  Central  problem 
began  with  an  attack  upon  the  so-called  "  Death  Ave- 
nue "  tracks  and  gradually  developed  into  a  campaign 
for  the  improvement  of  Riverside  Park,  without  at  any 
time  centering  general  public  interest  upon  its  com- 
mercial side.  It  is  of  course  true  that  our  great  com- 
mercial associations,  such  as  the  Chamber  of  Commerce, 
Merchants'  Association  and  the  Board  of  Trade  and 
Transportation  have  from  time  to  time  emphasized  this 
part  of  the  plan,  but  their  suggestions  were  for  the 
most  part  overshadowed  in  the  public  mind  by  the  grade 
crossing  elimination  and  park  features. 

The  Saxe  Law  provided  that  the  Board  of  Rapid 
Transit  Commissioners  should  prepare  plans  for  elimi- 
nating operation  at  grade  by  the  New  York  Central 
through  the  construction  of  a  subway  south  of  59th 
street.  After  providing  for  a  possible  agreement  with 
the  railroad  company  it  was  directed  that  in  the  event 
of  failure  by  the  railroad  company  to  accept  the  plans 
of  the  Commission  the  Corporation  Counsel  should 
begin  proceedings  to  condemn  the  rights  of  the  rail- 
road.    No  agreement  was  reached  under  the  Saxe  Law 

24 


and  proceedings  were  consequently  begun  for  condemna- 
tion. The  Court  held  that  the  Board  of  Rapid  Transit 
Railroad  Commissioners  had  failed  to  comply  with  cer- 
tain specific  requirements  of  the  Act  in  the  preparation 
of  its  plan,  and  therefore  that  the  condition  precedent 
to  support  condemnation  proceedings  had  not  been 
established. 

No  results  having  been  obtained  under  the  Saxe 
Law,  the  Board  of  Estimate  and  Apportionment  on 
May  28,  1909,  directed  the  Borough  President  of  Man- 
hattan to  serve  notice  upon  the  Company  that  unless 
the  surface  tracks  were  removed  within  thirty  days  he 
would  remove  them  forthwith.  This  action  was  taken 
upon  the  theory  that  surface  operation  constituted  a 
nuisance  which  the  City  could  abate  under  its  pohce 
powers.  The  power  of  the  City  to  carry  out  its  demand 
was  reviewed  in  the  courts  and  decided  in  favor  of  the 
Railroad  Company,  it  being  held  that  relief  must  be 
sought  by  State,  not  City,  action.  The  result  was  the 
passage  in  July,  1911,  of  Chapter  777  of  the  Laws  of 
1911.  This  act  still  remains  in  force  and  is  the  legis- 
lation under  which  the  plans  now  before  the  Board 
of  Estimate  and  Apportionment  for  consideration  have 
been  prepared. 

The  legislation  is  in  the  form  of  an  enabling  act  per- 
mitting the  New  York  Central  Railroad  to  file  vdth  the 
City  plans  for  the  relocation  and  improvement  of  its 
west  side  tracks  and  giving  the  City  power  to  accept 
these  plans  or  to  make  such  substitute  plans  as  it  may 
desire  to  submit  to  the  railroad  for  its  approval. 

Acting  under  the  statute,  the  New  York  Central 
filed  with  the  Board  of  Estimate  and  Apportionment 

25 


on  September  28,  1911,  plans  which  provided  for  an 
expanded  rail  system  with  increased  yard  spaces. 
It  proposed  that  the  Company  be  allowed  to  construct 
an  elevated  along  Twelfth  Avenue  and  the  marginal 
way  as  far  south  as  Cortlandt  street.  These  plans  were 
referred  by  the  Board  to  its  Committee  on  Port  and 
Terminal  Facilities  and  became  the  subject  of  an  ex- 
haustive set  of  negotiations  which  ended  in  the  submis- 
sion to  the  Board  on  March  27, 1913,  of  a  report  recom- 
mending the  adoption  of  the  New  York  Central's  plans 
in  modified  form.  As  these  plans  are  the  starting 
point  for  the  plan  of  1916  now  before  the  Board,  it  is 
worth  while  to  consider  them  in  detail. 

So  far  as  the  main  hne  trackage  is  concerned  it  was 
proposed  generally  to  expand  the  present  two-track  line 
into  a  four-track  hne  as  far  south  as  West  177th  street 
and  into  a  six-track  hne  from  that  point  to  the  entrance 
of  the  railroad  yard  between  59th  street  and  72nd  street. 
South  of  59th  street  it  was  proposed  to  relocate  a  four- 
track  hne  upon  the  surface  of  a  new  12th  Avenue  carried 
in  a  wide  sweep  back  of  the  location  selected  by  the  City 
for  its  thousand-foot  piers  between  44th  street  and  59th 
street.  Between  59th  street  and  44th  street  it  was  pro- 
posed to  construct  12th  Avenue  as  an  elevated  street 
connected  with  all  cross  thoroughfares  by  ramps.  At 
about  44th  street  it  was  proposed  to  permit  the  railroad 
to  begin  the  elevation  of  its  tracks,  reacliing  a  full  clear- 
ance of  fourteen  feet  on  an  elevated  structure  somewhat 
north  of  the  north  hne  of  42nd  street.  Between  this 
point  and  30th  street  the  tracks  were  to  continue 
elevated,  entering  a  reconstructed  railroad  yard  between 
30th  street  and  36th  street  at  the  second  story.  South 
of  30th  street  it  was  proposed  to  permit  the  Company 

26 


to  construct  at  its  own  expense  a  two-track  subway 
under  Tenth  avenue  to  15th  street,  thence  under  the 
Gansevoort  Market  site  to  the  head  of  Washington 
street,  and  thence  under  Washington  street  to  Canal 
street,  and  thence  to  a  connection  with  the  sub-surface 
of  the  reconstructed  yard  at  St.  John's  Park  at  Hudson 
and  Varick  streets. 

It  is  significant  in  this  connection  to  note  that  the 
Committee's  report  stated  that  : 

"  The  Central  Company  reserves  the  right 
to  establish  its  southerly  rail  terminus  at  any 
point  north  of  St.  John's  Park,  the  selection  of 
this  point,  however,  to  be  made  by  the  Company 
on  or  before  December  15,  1913.'* 

It  was  also  reported  by  the  Committee  at  that  time 
that: 

*'  The  Committee  has  further  demanded  of 
the  Company  and  the  Company  has  reluctantly 
agreed  that  it  shall  give  to  the  City  an  option, 
to  continue  in  force  up  to  the  first  day  of  Novem- 
ber, 1913,  to  purchase  from  the  Company  its  per- 
petual and  exclusive  franchises  for  its  tracks  in 
the  streets  and  avenues  south  of  30th  street  upon 
these  conditions: 

(1)  That  the  City  pay  to  the  Company  a 
cash  consideration,  such  consideration  having 
been  definitely  named  by  the  Company  to  the 
Committee  and  being  considered  by  the  Com- 
mittee to  be  fair  and  reasonable. 

(2)   That  the  City,  upon  the  exercise  of  the 
option,  construct  or  cause  to  be  constructed, 

27 


proper  and  suitable  rail  facilities  south  of  30th 
street  either  to  a  point  opposite  or  near  St. 
John's  Park  or  to  Barclay  street,  including 
at  least  two  main  tracks,  with  provisions  for 
proper  connection  with  freight  stations  which 
the  Railroad  Company  may  acquire  or  o^vn, 
and  also  such  industries,  warehouses,  etc., 
doing  an  amount  of  business  which  would  jus- 
tify a  siding  or  private  track,  which  facilities 
shall  be  open  to  the  use  of  the  New  York 
Central  and  all  other  roads  upon  equal  terms. 

It  was  perfectly  obvious  to  the  Committee  that  a 
freight  subway  along  the  line  proposed  would  not  prove 
a  particularly  efficient  freight-handling  facility.  At 
the  same  time,  the  settlement  suggested  accomplished 
the  removal  of  tracks  from  the  grades  of  streets  and 
avoided  the  construction  of  a  privately-owned  elevated 
in  streets  or  on  the  marginal  way  south  of  30th  street, 
a  structure  which  was  considered  by  the  Committee  very 
objectionable  from  a  civic  standpoint. 

In  addition  to  the  increased  main  line  trackage  it 
was  proposed  to  permit  the  Company  to  construct  a 
new  waterfront  yard  directly  south  of  Dyckman  street 
and  a  very  largely  expanded  yard  at  Manhattanville. 
At  the  latter  location  it  was  proposed  to  permit  the  rail- 
road company  to  fill  in  the  major  part  of  the  existing 
cove  between  153d  street  and  144th  street,  and  to  con- 
struct a  yard  with  a  capacity  of  not  less  than  1,500  cars. 
Outshore  of  this  yard  was  shown,  for  future  construc- 
tion, three  commercial  piers  and  two  float  bridges. 
Along  Riverside  Park  south  of  129th  street  it  was  pro- 
posed that  the  tracks  should  remain  practically  upon 

28 


their  present  location  and  that  they  should  be  covered 
with  a  steel-and-concrete  roof,  the  surface  of  which 
could  be  treated  either  as  a  part  of  the  park  system  or 
turned  into  a  waterfront  esplanade. 

Apart  from  the  criticisms  levelled  at  the  aesthetic 
features  of  the  plan,  the  most  serious  objection  was 
raised  by  commercial  bodies  to  the  proposed  subway 
south  of  30th  street.  It  was  generally  recognized  that 
such  a  subway  would  be  extremely  difficult  for  utiliza- 
tion as  a  feeder  to  adjoining  property  and  that  at  best 
it  could  be  little  more  than  a  means  of  connection  be- 
tween 30th  street  and  the  St.  John's  Park  yard.  It 
occupied  valuable  City  streets  with  consequent  interfer- 
ence with  their  use  for  future  passenger  subways.  Inci- 
dentally it  would  have  meant  great  interference  with  the 
sewer  system  of  a  large  portion  of  Manhattan  and  dis- 
turbance of  all  of  the  public  utilities  existing  along  the 
route.  As  already  noted,  the  officials  of  the  New  York 
Central,  in  agreeing  to  the  settlement,  insisted  upon  the 
insertion  of  a  condition  giving  them  the  right  to  discon- 
tinue any  portion  of  the  through  rail  service  south  of 
30th  street  which  they  deemed  it  uneconomical  to  furnish 
in  the  manner  proposed. 

So  far  as  the  option  to  purchase  the  Company's  ex- 
clusive franchise  is  concerned,  it  was  not  deemed  wise 
to  exercise  it  because  of  the  unwillingness  of  the  other 
railroads  to  consider  any  scheme  for  entering  into  the 
operation  of  such  joint  terminal  as  the  City  might  pro- 
vide as  a  substitute  for  the  New  York  Central's  tracks. 
The  situation  reduced  itself,  therefore,  to  an  option  by 
the  City  to  wipe  out  the  exclusive  character  of  the  rights 
held  by  the  New  York  Central  through  a  cash  payment 

29 


and  the  assumption  of  obligation  to  construct  a  railroad 
which  it  was  perfectly  obvious  could  only  be  made  to 
carry  itself  through  the  support  of  other  railroads  which 
declined  to  consider  its  use.  The  City  was  faced  there- 
fore with  the  certainty  of  a  continuing  deficit  under  such 
a  plan  with  no  prospect  of  the  capital  invested  becoming 
self-sustaining. 

After  a  number  of  public  hearings  upon  the  plan  it 
was  referred  back  to  the  Committee  with  instructions 
to  continue  negotiations  with  the  New  York  Central 
and  to  report  back  such  modifications  as  seemed  to  be 
desirable.  This  was  the  condition  of  the  matter  upon 
the  organization  of  the  present  Board  of  Estimate  and 
Apportionment  on  January  1,  1914.  With  the  reor- 
ganization of  the  Board  the  matter  was  referred  to  the 
newly  organized  Committee  on  Port  and  Terminal 
Facilities,  consisting  of  the  Comptroller,  as  chairman, 
the  Presidents  of  the  Boroughs  of  Manhattan  and 
Brooklyn,  and  the  Commissioner  of  Docks. 

Upon  a  re-examination  of  the  plans  the  Committee 
decided  to  take  advantage  of  the  provision  of  the  enab- 
ling act  which  permitted  the  preparation  and  submis- 
sion by  the  City  of  substitute  plans  for  those  filed  by  the 
Railroad.  As  the  matter  was  highly  technical  and  in- 
timately connected  with  the  development  of  the  City's 
waterfront  the  Commissioner  of  Docks  was  requested  to 
prepare  plans  for  the  Committee's  preliminary  study 
and  consideration. 

The  matter  was  thereupon  taken  up  and  studied  in 
exhaustive  detail  and  preliminary  plans  prepared.  In- 
formation was  sought  from  every  possible  source,  in- 
cluding such  suggestions  as  various  civic  organizations 

30 


made  from  time  to  time  while  the  study  was  progressing. 
Upon  the  receipt  of  these  prehminary  plans  the  Com- 
mittee canvassed  the  situation  thoroughly  and  decided 
to  associate  with  itself  in  an  advisory  capacity  a  com- 
mittee of  engineers  consisting  of  Mr.  E.  P.  Goodrich, 
consulting  engineer  of  the  Borough  of  Manhattan ;  Mr. 
Charles  W.  Staniford,  chief  engineer  of  the  Depart- 
ment of  Docks  and  Ferries,  and  Mr.  John  F.  Sullivan, 
assistant  engineer  of  the  Bureau  of  Contract  Super- 
vision of  the  Board  of  Estimate  and  Apportioimient. 
The  plans  prepared  by  the  Dock  Commissioner  were 
referred  to  this  committee  of  engineers  and  various 
details  perfected.  A  subsequent  series  of  conferences 
with  the  officials  of  the  New  York  Central  were  held  and 
the  plans  officially  agreed  to  by  the  railroad.  It  is  these 
plans  which  were  filed  with  the  Board  of  Estimate  on 
April  6,  1916,  as  the  City's  substitute  for  the  plans 
original^  filed  by  the  railroad.  How  vitally  these  plans 
aflPect  the  prosperity  of  the  Port  of  New  York  can  only 
be  appreciated  by  a  complete  analysis  in  the  light  of 
the  existing  situation. 


31 


Ill 

THE  PLANS  OF  1916 

rriHE  New  York  Central  has  at  the  present  time 
within  the  boundaries  of  the  City  approximately 
89  miles  of  single  freight  track.  This  includes  all  of 
the  yard  trackage  as  well  as  the  main  line  running 
tracks.  If  the  1916  plan  is  adopted  it  will  permit  the 
expansion  of  this  trackage  to  approximately  134  miles, 
a  very  large  portion  of  the  addition  being  made  up  of 
track  facilities  in  the  new  and  reorganized  yards.  So 
far  as  trackage  in  public  streets  is  concerned,  there 
would  be  almost  two  miles  less  under  the  1916  plan 
than  the  Company  has  at  the  present  time,  and  prac- 
tically all  of  the  new  trackage  in  streets  would  be 
elevated,  whereas  it  is  now  on  the  surface. 

Beginning  at  the  City  line,  it  is  proposed  to  make 
certain  readjustments  in  the  Borough  of  the  Bronx, 
none  of  which  are  of  any  particular  general  interest 
or  importance.  They  involve  a  slight  widening  of  the 
railroad  right  of  way  to  the  west,  with  a  small  amount 
of  additional  fill.  The  new  right  of  way,  however,  will 
be  obtained  by  the  acquisition  of  private  property,  ^vith 
the  exception  of  a  small  parcel  of  land  under  water 
directly  north  of  the  Harlem  Ship  Canal.  Here  it  is 
the  plan  to  permit  the  Company  to  acquire  from  the 
City  certain  land  under  water  necessary  for  the  rear- 
rangement of  its  entrance  to  the  new  bridge  which 
would  be  built  across  the  canal. 

32 


The  railroad  will  cross  the  Ship  Canal  with  four 
tracks,  and  the  method  of  crossing  is  the  first  point 
which  affects  the  interests  of  the  City.  At  the  present 
time  the  Railroad  Company  maintains  a  two-track 
drawbridge  directly  across  the  entrance  to  the  Canal, 
with  a  clearance  of  but  six  feet  above  the  line  of  mean 
high  water.  The  consequent  interference  with  traffic 
between  the  Ship  Canal  and  the  Hudson  has  been  in- 
creasingly serious,  and  has  had  the  effect  of  greatly 
retarding  the  development  of  a  large  portion  of  the 
Bronx  waterfront.  The  United  States  Government  has 
well-matured  plans  for  the  straightening  and  improve- 
ment of  the  Ship  Canal  through  the  creation  of  a  new 
artificial  channel  formed  by  the  cutting  through  of  the 
bend  at  the  Johnson  Iron  Works  slightly  to  the  east 
of  the  Hudson  River  entrance.  This  improvement  will 
reduce  the  velocity  of  the  current  and  will  greatly  sim- 
plify navigation.  The  State  has  located  several  barge 
canal  terminals  at  various  points  along  the  Ship  Canal, 
and  it  is  confidently  expected  that  a  very  large  and  im- 
portant traffic  will  pass  through  this  waterway  with  the 
opening  of  the  Barge  Canal.  There  will  certainly  be  a 
considerable  amount  of  through  traffic  between  North 
and  East  River  points.  It  is  of  the  utmost  importance, 
therefore,  that  the  present  low  swing  bridge  should  be 
removed  as  promptly  as  possible. 

The  enabling  statute  provides  that : 

"The  said  plans  and  profiles  to  be  submitted 
by  said  Company  shall  also  show  such  changes 
as  may  be  necessary  or  required  to  construct  a 
tunnel  or  tunnels  and  approaches  thereto,  to 
carry  the  tracks  of  said  railroad  below  the  surface 
of  Spuyten  Duyvil  Creek,  at  or  near  its  junction 

33 


with  the  North  River,  at  such  depth  as  to  leave 
at  least  twenty-five  (25)  feet  in  the  clear  from 
the  top  of  such  tunnel  or  tunnels  to  the  surface 
of  Spuyten  Duyvil  Creek  at  mean  high  tide." 

The  present  plans  comply  with  the  statute  and  show 
two  tunnels  which  may  possibly  be  built  in  the  future. 
The  statute  does  not  require  that  all  of  the  tracks  should 
be  placed  in  tunnels  and  a  study  of  the  question  by  the 
engineers  of  the  City  led  them  to  the  conclusion  that 
it  was  not  feasible  from  a  practical  standpoint  to  compel 
the  railroad  to  adopt  this  form  of  crossing  for  its  freight 
traffic.  A  careful  examination  of  navigating  conditions 
at  the  entrance  to  the  Canal  showed  conclusively  that 
if  a  new  bridge  were  constructed  with  the  standard 
clearance  of  the  other  bridges  crossing  the  Harlem 
(twenty-four  feet,  eight  inches),  that  there  would  be  no 
appreciable  interference  with  traffic.  The  present  plan 
therefore  provides  for  such  a  structure  located  some- 
what to  the  east  of  the  present  bridge.  It  is  designed 
to  permit  two  100-foot  channels,  but  may  be  changed 
to  a  two-lift  span  bridge,  which  will  increase  the  width 
of  channels  by  reducing  the  centre  pier. 

The  manner  of  crossing  navigable  streams  is  strictly 
controlled  by  the  Federal  Government,  and  before  the 
type  of  bridge  can  be  finally  adopted  it  must  receive  the 
approval  of  the  Secretary  of  War.  So  far  as  the  Har- 
lem river  is  concerned,  the  matter  is  specifically  regu- 
lated by  an  Act  of  Congress,  Chapter  907,  Section  1, 
1890,  which  provides  that: 

"The  said  bridges  shall  leave  a  clear  space 
between  the  undersides  thereof  and  the  high 
water  of  spring  tides  of  twenty-four  feet,  and 

34 


shall  be  provided  with  draw  spans  and  draws 
of  the  width  and  length  to  be  determined  by  the 
Secretary  of  War,  and  shall  in  all  respects  com- 
ply with  this  law  and  conform  to  the  require- 
ments of  the  Secretary  of  War." 

The  exact  location  of  the  new  bridge  was  determined 
very  largely  by  the  necessity  of  so  placing  the  Bronx 
end  that  a  satisfactory  operating  connection  could  be 
secured  between  the  west  side  tracks  and  the  tracks  of 
the  Spuyten  Duyvil  &  Port  Morris  division  of  the  Rail- 
road. This  was  necessary  because  over  this  division 
there  passes  the  freight  business  of  the  Harlem  River 
and  Putnam  divisions  of  the  New  York  Central  in 
reaching  the  Manhattan  freight  terminals.  The  Man- 
hattan end  of  the  bridge  was  located  at  a  point  where 
the  tracks  could  be  conveniently  diverted  into  the  new 
tunnel  which  it  is  proposed  to  construct  south  of  the 
Canal. 

The  upper  end  of  Manhattan  Island,  between  the 
Ship  Canal  and  Dyckman  street,  is  formed  by  Inwood 
Hill.  This  section  has  an  elevation  of  180  feet,  the 
maximum  in  Manhattan  Island,  and  remains  very 
largely  in  its  natural  condition,  with  heavily  wooded 
slopes.  The  City  has  had  under  consideration  for  a 
number  of  years  the  creation  of  a  new  City  park  on  the 
westerly  slope  of  Inwood  Hill  as  the  natural  rounding- 
out  of  the  great  system  of  riverside  parks  extending 
north  of  72nd  street. 

At  the  present  time  the  railroad  occupies  a  66-foot 
waterfront  strip  along  the  entire  face  of  this  Hill,  suffi- 
cient for  a  four-track  line.  The  original  proposal  of 
the  Railroad  was  that  it  be  allowed  to  remain  upon  its 

35 


present  right  of  way,  elevating  its  tracks  sufficiently  to 
reach  the  new  bridge.  This  treatment  would  have  de- 
stroyed much  of  the  value  of  the  Hill  for  park  purposes. 
The  present  plans  call  for  the  abandonment  of  the 
present  right  of  way  by  the  Railroad  and  its  cession 
to  the  City.  As  a  substitute  it  is  proposed  to  place  the 
four  new  tracks  of  the  Railroad  in  a  tunnel,  which  will 
be  carried  from  the  southerly  side  of  the  Ship  Canal 
to  a  point  near  the  northerly  side  of  Dyckman  street. 

The  treatment  of  the  Dyckman  street  crossing  is  a 
matter  with  which  the  commercial  interests  of  the  City 
are  very  much  concerned.  The  topography  of  Man- 
hattan is  such  that  tiiere  is  no  level  cross-island  street 
in  the  long  stretch  between  ^Manhattan  Valley  and  the 
Ship  Canal,  with  the  exception  of  Dyckman  street. 
The  legislative  act  provided  that  the  original  plans  to 
be  filed  by  the  Railroad  should  show  Dyckman  street 
carried  over  the  railroad  tracks.  Several  schemes  were 
worked  out  in  compliance  with  this  pro\'ision  of  the 
statute.  The  railroad  originally  proposed  that  a  bridge 
be  built  across  its  right  of  way  and  that  ramps  be  con- 
structed, both  on  the  inshore  and  waterfront  sides. 
The  1913  report  of  the  Port  and  Terminal  Committee 
suggested  a  modification  which  would  have  raised  the 
grade  of  Dyckman  street  its  entire  width  all  the  way 
from  Broadway  to  the  easterly  side  of  the  tracks.  This 
plan  would  have  eliminated  the  inshore  ramp,  but  the 
riverfront  ramp  would  necessarily  have  remained. 

Both  of  these  plans  were  defective  in  placing  the 
barrier  of  a  hea^'^^  grade  between  the  waterfront  and 
the  upland.  A  ferry  has  already  been  established  at 
the  foot  of  the  street,  connecting  with  the  Interstate 
Park,  and  with  the  main  road  to  a  number  of  important 

56 


New  Jersey  towns.  Plans  are  under  way  for  extensive 
market  and  terminal  development  directly  to  the  south 
of  Dyekman  street  and  it  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that 
the  thoroughfare  will  become  increasingly  important  to 
the  rapidly  growing  section  directly  back  of  it. 

The  deflection  of  the  trackage  into  a  tunnel  through 
Inwood  Hill  made  it  an  easy  matter  to  bring  them  to 
Dyekman  street  at  a  sufficient  elevation  to  provide  for 
an  overgrade  crossing  and  avoid  entirely  the  disturb- 
ance of  the  existing  street  grade.  The  1916  plan  there- 
fore has  adopted  this  type  of  treatment  and  provides 
for  a  viaduct  with  a  minimum  clearance  of  fourteen 
feet.  The  structure  will  be  made  architecturally  at- 
tractive. 

South  of  Dyekman  street  the  road  is  continued  as 
a  four-track  line  practically  along  its  present  right  of 
way  to  a  point  south  of  West  177th  street.  Between 
a  point  north  of  181st  street  and  a  point  somewhat  south 
of  West  177th  street  they  pass  through  Fort  Washing- 
ton Park.  At  the  present  time  the  Company  has  a 
two-track  line  through  the  park,  for  most  of  the  dis- 
tance through  a  deep  rock  cut.  It  owns,  however,  suffi* 
cient  land  to  permit  the  widening  out  to  four  tracks. 
The  plans  provide  for  widening  to  this  extent  and  in- 
clude, as  part  of  the  settlement,  an  obligation  by  the 
Railroad  Company  to  construct  a  steel  and  concrete 
roof  over  the  tracks  where  they  pass  through  the  rock 
cut  and  the  filling-in  over  the  top  of  this  roof,  so  as  to 
make  the  area  within  the  right  of  way  available  for  park 
purposes. 

It  is  not  proposed  at  the  present  time  to  cover  any 
of  the  tracks  between  Dyekman  street  and  153rd  street 

37 


except  where  they  pass  through  this  rock  cut.  At  the 
same  time  the  City  will  reserve  in  its  contract  with  the 
Railroad  the  right  to  cover  these  tracks  at  any  time 
in  the  future  and  to  use  the  cover  either  as  a  part  of 
the  park  system  or  for  City  streets. 

Beginning  near  the  southerly  boundary  of  Fort 
Washington  Park  the  main  line  tracks  are  expanded 
from  four  to  six  and  they  continue  as  a  six-track  line 
from  this  point  to  the  60th  street  yard.  They  remain 
on  the  surface  as  far  south  as  148th  street,  at  which 
point  they  begin  to  rise  to  avoid  grade  crossings  through 
Manhattan  Valley.  There  will  be  no  grade  crossings, 
however,  the  few  streets  which  cross  the  railroad  being 
carried  over  by  bridges. 

Between  144th  street  and  133rd  street  it  is  pro- 
posed to  allow  the  Company  to  expand  its  present  yard 
facilities  so  as  to  increase  the  capacity  from  426  cars 
to  approximately  1,000  cars.  The  importance  of  ade- 
quate yard  facilities  to  serve  the  Manhattan  Valley  is 
shown  by  the  large  amount  of  business  which  the  rail- 
road is  now  doing  in  the  very  cramped  and  poorly 
arranged  terminal  which  it  now  has.  In  1915,  for 
example,  there  was  a  total  of  264,481  tons  of  freight 
handled  at  the  ^lanhattanville  terminal,  of  which 
approximately  one-half  was  milk.  In  fact,  the  neces- 
sity of  delivering  a  rapidly  increasing  amount  of  milk 
at  this  point  has  crowded  out  much  of  the  miscellaneous 
local  freight,  which  cannot  secure  proper  accommoda- 
tion under  existing  conditions.  From  1908  the  tons 
of  milk  have  increased  from  71,126  to  130,235,  whereas 
the  general  merchandise  received  and  forwarded  has 
decreased  from  159,091  tons  to  134,245  tons.  The 
theoretical  objections  to  increasing  the  size  of  a  railroad 

38 


yard  located  outshore  of  a  highly-developed  residential 
section  are,  of  course,  perfectly  obvious.  Everything 
possible  will  be  done  to  reduce  any  reasonable  objection 
to  a  minimum;  the  major  portion  of  the  main  line  tracks 
will  be  covered  and  the  City  can  extend  Riverside  Park 
over  them  to  the  westerly  edge.  No  buildings  will  be 
permitted  in  the  yard  except  those  necessary  for  actual 
operating  purposes,  and  even  these  will  be  restricted 
in  height,  so  that  they  cannot  extend  above  the  main 
line  roof  structure  and  will  be  of  a  design  approved  by 
the  Board  of  Estimate.  The  Railroad  will  be  com- 
pelled to  contract  that  it  will  not  use  the  yard  for  the 
shipment  or  storage  of  cattle. 

As  originally  proposed  by  the  Railroad,  the  yard 
was  planned  to  extend  as  far  north  as  153rd  street.  It 
was  suggested  that  the  existing  cove  between  143rd 
street  and  153rd  street  be  filled  in  out  to  the  bulkhead 
line  and  that  the  new  made  land  be  covered  with  yard 
tracks.  It  was  also  planned  to  build  three  commercial 
piers  and  two  float  bridges.  The  engineers  of  the 
Board  of  Estimate  and  Apportionment  were  instructed 
to  study  and  report  upon : 

(1)  The  possibility  of  removing  the  Man- 
hattanville  yard  to  the  blocks  east  of  the  present 
viaduct  structure  across  IVIanhattan  Valley,  or 
to  relocate  it  at  some  other  part  of  the  City. 

(2)  In  the  event  of  being  unable  to  recom- 
mend its  relocation,  to  report  the  smallest 
amount  of  trackage  which  would  reasonably 
serve  the  purely  local  needs  of  the  Harlem  dis- 
trict. 

After  the  most  thorough  and  exhaustive  investiga- 

S9 


tion  it  appeared  impossible  to  relocate  the  yard  and  the 
plan  now  under  consideration  represents  the  expert 
judgment  of  the  City's  own  engineers  of  the  local  re- 
quirements. 

The  piers  and  float  bridges  have  been  entirely  elim- 
inated and  their  construction  made  impossible  by  the 
requirement  that  the  Railroad  Company  cede  to  the 
City  of  New  York  the  fee  of  all  of  the  land  under 
water  which  it  owns  outshore  of  the  yard  area  shown 
upon  the  plans.  The  railroad  is  given  easement  rights 
in  76  feet  of  the  proposed  new  marginal  way  between 
135th  street  and  143d  street.  This  will  be  used  for  the 
temporary  storage  of  freight  in  transit  and  for  no  other 
purpose.  The  1,600  feet  of  bulkhead  will  be  used  by 
the  Railroad  for  the  handling  of  local  lighterage  busi- 
ness. 

The  six  main  line  tracks  will  leave  the  Manhattan- 
ville  yard  on  an  elevated  structure  carried  across  the 
Manhattan  Valley  parallel  to  the  present  street  viaduct. 
All  cross-streets  will  be  carried  under  this  elevated  with 
full  fourteen-foot  clearance.  The  railroad  tracks  will 
be  far  below  the  street  viaduct  and  will,  to  a  very  large 
extent,  be  completely  screened  by  warehouses  and  in- 
dustrial buildings  which  the  Railroad  proposes  to  con- 
struct over  them.  These  buildings  will  not  be  per- 
mitted to  extend  above  the  floor  of  the  street  viaduct, 
and  a  provision  will  be  inserted  in  the  contract  prevent- 
ing the  use  of  any  portion  of  the  roof  for  advertising 
sign  purposes.  The  City  will  thus  secure  permanently 
the  continuance  of  the  view  from  the  street  viaduct 
and  will  protect  itself  very  largely  against  the  continu- 
ance or  repetition  of  the  advertising  nuisances  which 
mar  it  at  present.     The  blocks  between  the  east  side 

40 


of  the  viaduct  and  Broadway  would  seem  to  lend  them- 
selves admirably  for  development  for  terminal  market 
purposes.  They  can  readily  be  served  from  the  New 
York  Central's  relocated  tracks,  and  they  are  in  direct 
touch  with  excellent  traffic  thoroughfares  and  suffi- 
ciently near  the  waterfront  to  permit  water  service. 

Extending  south  from  128th  street  the  tracks  are 
to  be  carried  partly  on  the  present  right  of  way  and 
partly  under  Riverside  Park  to  a  point  near  81st  street. 
The  plans  call  for  a  combination  of  tunnel  and  roofed 
subway  treatment  which  will  completely  hide  the  tracks 
and  permit  parking  over  the  roof.  The  effect  upon 
Riverside  Park  is  discussed  in  detail  elsewhere. 

From  81st  street  to  72d  street  the  tracks  will  grad- 
ually widen  out  as  an  entrance  to  the  yard  which  ex- 
tends from  59th  street  to  72d  street.  These  leads  have 
been  cut  down  by  the  City's  engineers  to  the  very 
smallest  possible  number  consistent  with  the  proper 
yard  treatment. 

The  yard  between  59th  street  and  72  d  street  will 
be  entirely  rearranged  and  reconstructed,  and  although 
the  car  capacity  will  not  be  greatly  increased  its  ef- 
ficiency will  be  at  least  doubled.  It  is  proposed  to 
divide  the  new  yard  into  four  divisions,  each  at  a  dif- 
ferent elevation.  Along  the  waterfront  there  will  be 
a  strip  approximately  250  feet  in  width  upon  which 
the  tracks  will  remain  on  the  surface  to  serve  the  float 
bridges  and  piers.  To  the  east  of  this  section  there  will 
be  an  elevated  receiving  yard  varying  in  width  from 
approximately  150  feet  to  almost  400  feet,  which  will 
vary  in  elevation  from  12  to  20  feet  and  which  will  carry 
the  main  line  running  tracks  as  well  as  the  necessary 

41 


tracks  for  receiving  freight.  From  67th  street  to  59th 
street  there  will  be  a  west-bound  classification  yard 
varying  in  elevation  from  5  to  12  feet  and  between  25 
and  375  feet  in  width.  To  the  east  of  this  classifica- 
tion yard  there  is  provided  a  local  delivery  yard  having 
an  approximate  elevation  of  25  feet.  This  local  delivery 
yard  can  be  directly  served  by  West  End  avenue  and 
various  crosstown  streets. 

Instead  of  the  present  type  of  yard,  in  which  the 
sidings  are  for  the  most  part  carried  to  stub  ends  on 
the  waterfront,  the  new  yard  will  be  of  the  circulating 
type,  with  tracks  running  directly  through  north  and 
south. 

The  handling  of  cattle,  which  now  occupies  stock 
yard  space  approximately  270,000  square  feet  in  extent, 
close  to  West  End  avenue,  from  60th  to  63d  streets, 
will  be  shifted  south  to  59th  street,  and  placed  outshore 
directly  to  the  north  of  the  59th  street  pier.  It  will  also 
be  reduced  in  area  to  200,000  square  feet.  In  its  new 
location  it  will  be  screened  on  the  south  by  the  power- 
house of  the  Interborough  Rapid  Transit  Company 
and  on  the  north  by  the  present  railroad  piers.  It  will 
be  nearly  three-quarters  of  a  mile  south  of  the  nearest 
point  on  Riverside  Drive,  and  cannot  possibly  constitute 
a  nuisance  to  residents  along  the  Drive  or  to  persons 
using  the  Drive  and  Park.  At  the  present  time  the 
Citv  owns  the  beds  of  streets  and  avenues  within  the 
yard  area.  The  streets,  however,  are  all  closed  bj^  act 
of  Legislature,  and  have  for  a  long  period  of  time  been 
occupied  by  the  Railroad  under  lease. 

It  is  proposed  as  part  of  the  settlement  to  deed  to 
the  Railroad  Company  the  fee  of  streets  and  avenues 

42 


within  the  yard  limits,  reserving  to  the  City,  however, 
the  right  to  construct  a  viaduct  in  the  hne  of  70th  street 
to  the  waterfront  area  which  will  be  ceded  by  the  Rail- 
road Company  to  the  City  between  70th  street  and 
72d  street.  The  suggestion  has  been  made  that  the  City 
should  reserve  the  right  to  build  12th  Avenue  through 
the  railroad  j^ard  upon  the  theory  that  such  a  street 
would  relieve  the  present  north  and  south  thoroughfares 
of  a  portion  of  their  congestion. 

It  is  only  necessary  to  consider  the  proposed  eleva- 
tions of  the  new  yard  to  realize  that  there  are  serious 
engineering  difficulties  in  the  way  of  the  construction 
of  12th  Avenue,  as  suggested.  It  would  be  necessary 
to  keep  the  street  level  sufficiently  high  to  avoid  inter- 
ference with  the  handling  of  freight  upon  the  elevated 
portion  of  the  eastbound  receiving  yard,  which  would 
mean  that  12th  Avenue  would  reach  the  southern 
boundary  of  the  yard  at  59th  street  approximately  43 
feet  above  the  grade  of  surrounding  streets.  From  this 
point  it  would  be  necessary  to  construct  a  ramp  easterly 
through  59th  street,  involving  certain  changes  of  grade 
and  damage  to  abutting  property,  or  to  bring  the  street 
down  to  the  grade  of  the  waterfront.  If  the  latter 
plan  were  adopted  it  would  mean  the  construction  of 
a  ramp  on  the  marginal  way  south  of  59th  street  for  a 
very  long  distance,  creating  a  barrier  to  the  approaches, 
of  important  City  piers  and  closing  the  waterfront  end 
of  several  cross  streets.  Aside  from  the  excessive  cost 
of  constructing  12th  Avenue  across  the  yard  it  is  at 
least  extremely  doubtful  whether  it  would  prove  of 
material  public  service.  It  would  connect  at  the  north 
end  with  Riverside  Drive,  which  should  not  be  opened 
to  business  traffic,  and  at  the  south  end  it  would  reach 

43 


a  point  which  would  interfere  with  the  traffic  from  the 
east  and  downtown  business  centers. 

As  the  waterfront  between  59th  street  and  70th 
street  is  occupied  entirely  by  the  business  of  the  New 
York  Central  there  is  no  particular  object  in  securing 
public  access  to  it  from  the  upland,  except  in  the  line 
of  70th  street,  as  proposed. 

As  part  of  the  settlement  there  will  be  a  readjust- 
ment of  waterfront  ownership  between  59th  street  and 
72nd  street  between  the  Railroad  Company  and  the 
City,  which  will  be  mutually  advantageous.  The  City 
is  to  secure  from  the  Railroad  title  to  the  bulkhead 
between  70th  street  and  72nd  street  and  all  land  under 
water  outshore.  This  will  make  available  a  strip  about 
440  feet  in  length  and  40  feet  in  width,  which  it  is  pro- 
posed to  develop  as  a  site  for  the  refuse  disposal  plants 
and  coal  facilities,  thus  relieving  the  Riverside  water- 
front of  the  present  unsightly  commercial  and  muni- 
cipal uses.  In  return  the  City  is  to  cede  to  the  Railroad 
Company  the  land  under  water  covered  by  the  59th 
street  pier,  together  with  the  pier  structure.  This  pier 
is  in  reality  an  integral  part  of  the  present  railroad  yard 
and  has  been  leased  to  the  New  York  Central  for  a 
number  of  years.  It  is  a  pier  which  could  not  be  leased 
satisfactorily  by  the  City.  The  City  will  be  the  gainer 
by  transferring  its  title  to  the  Railroad  Company. 

The  waterfront  between  44th  street  and  59th  street 
was  the  site  set  apart  by  the  City  for  the  construction  of 
its  new  Ocean  Steamship  Terminals  for  passenger  and 
package  freight  business.  The  original  treatment  of 
this  section  has  been  modified  by  the  Dock  Department 
to  provide  for  1,000  foot  piers  as  far  as  50th  Street 


only,  north  of  which  is  the  restricted  Canal  Basin  area, 
part  of  which  is  now  to  be  a  Barge  Canal  Terminal, 
and  north  of  that  the  new  Mediterranean  steamship 
terminals  which  the  Dock  Department  has  provided  at 
the  foot  of  56th  and  57th  streets,  which  do  not  require 
a  depth  of  slip  greater  than  exists  at  present.  The 
waterfront  changes  in  this  section  make  it  necessary  to 
relocate  12th  Avenue  and  the  marginal  way,  so  as  to 
carry  them  inshore  in  a  sweeping  curve  between  51st 
street  and  42nd  street. 

It  is  proposed  to  permit  the  New  York  Central  to 
leave  the  59th  street  yard  with  a  four-track  elevated 
structure,  located  upon  12th  Avenue,  as  laid  out  under 
this  plan.  The  tracks  have  been  kept  sufficiently  far 
inshore  to  permit  of  construction  to  the  west  of  them 
of  a  municipally-owned  elevated  structure  to  carry  two 
additional  tracks.  It  is  proposed  that  if  these  tracks 
be  constructed  they  be  used  as  a  part  of  whatever 
general  system  of  terminal  development  may  be  worked 
out  to  include  other  railroads  desiring  to  reach  this  sec- 
tion. In  order  to  avoid  unnecessary  columns  a  stipu- 
lation has  been  incorporated  into  the  settlement  with 
the  New  York  Central,  compelling  that  Company  to 
spend  the  necessary  additional  amount  to  strengthen  the 
westerly  line  of  elevated  colunms  supporting  their  rail- 
road sufficiently  to  bear  the  easterly  side  of  the  muni- 
cipal structure.  This  concession  is  of  much  importance 
and  greatly  increases  the  value  of  the  reserved  space 
to  the  west  of  the  New  York  Central  tracks. 

There  is  considerable  difference  of  opinion  as  to  the 
desirability  of  placing  railroad  tracks  upon  City-owned 
piers  in  the  North  River  section.  In  certain  cases  it 
is  undoubtedly  true  that  it  is  of  value  to  be  able  to  bring 

45 


a  freight  car  directly  to  the  side  of  the  ship.  This  is  par- 
ticularly true  at  European  ports,  but  it  must  be  remem- 
bered in  this  connection  that  owing  to  the  difference  in 
size  between  the  European  and  American  freight  cars 
the  situation  is  not  really  comparable.  The  average 
European  car  is  sufficiently  light  to  enable  it  to  be 
moved  from  place  to  place  by  stevedores.  Instead  of 
box  cars,  it  is  customary  to  use  flat  cars,  protecting  the 
merchandise  by  tarpaulin.  The  cars  commonly  used  on 
American  roads  can  only  be  moved  by  means  of  switch- 
ing engines,  and  it  is  impossible  to  employ  these  to  ad- 
vantage unless  there  be  sufficient  yard  space  and  switch- 
ing tracks  back  of  the  piers  to  accommodate  them 
and  move  them  from  place  to  place  as  they  are  re- 
quired. In  connection  with  the  North  River  situation, 
it  is  also  true  that  the  business  passing  over  the  piers  is 
very  largely  express  matter  and  package  freight,  which 
moves  in  less  than  carload  lots,  and  it  consequently  could 
not  be  handled  to  advantage  direct  from  ship  to  cars 
on  the  pier.  The  present  method  of  trucking  and  light- 
ering seems  to  be  the  best  which  can  be  devised  for  this 
particular  type  of  business.  With  waterfront  values 
as  high  as  they  necessarily  must  be  in  the  very  restricted 
North  River  section,  it  is  uneconomical  to  build  piers 
of  sufficient  width  to  provide  the  large  area  on  the  deck 
of  the  pier  for  the  number  of  tracks  required  to  handle 
properly  the  great  number  of  freight  cars.  Single  or 
even  double  line  tracks  with  switches  lead  to  congestion 
and  poor  dispatch  of  freight,  which  must  be  handled 
promptly  from  or  to  the  ship.  In  constructing  the  new 
pier  at  46th  street  the  Department,  in  spite  of  its  strong 
con\nction  that  railroad  tracks  were  unnecessary,  never- 
theless decided  to  provide  structurally  for  tracks  upon 

4S 


the  upper  deck  of  the  pier  so  that  it  would  be  simple  and 
inexpensive  actually  to  lay  the  rails  if  future  require- 
ments of  conmierce  demanded  it.  The  additional  cost 
was  so  slight  it  seemed  unwise  to  foreclose  the  possi- 
bility of  making  a  direct  rail  connection.  These  tracks 
could  be  used  from  the  elevated  structure  which  the 
City  reserves  the  right  to  build  in  the  future  west  of  the 
New  York  Central  Company's  line. 

From  the  standpoint  of  commerce  and  the  best  use 
of  the  waterfront,  the  plan  now  proposed  between  59th 
street  and  42d  street  is  infinitely  superior  to  the  sug- 
gested treatment  in  1913,  which,  it  will  be  recalled,  pro- 
vided for  the  elevation  of  12th  avenue,  leaving  the  rail- 
road tracks  upon  the  present  surface.  Such  a  treatment 
would  have  imposed  a  barrier  between  the  upland  and 
the  waterfront  which  would  have  made  it  necessary  for 
shippers  to  pass  and  repass  in  trucking  freight  between 
the  upland  and  waterside  stations. 

The  present  plan  also  has  the  additional  advantage 
of  not  interfering  with  access  to  the  waterfront  from 
any  of  the  cross-streets.  The  ramp  proposed  in  1913 
to  carry  the  tracks  to  the  elevated  structure  across  42d 
street  would  have  closed  both  43d  street  and  44th  street. 

The  tracks  will  be  continued  on  the  elevated  struc- 
ture across  42d  street  and  along  12th  avenue  to  30th 
street,  entering  the  upper  story  of  the  reorganized  30th 
street  yard  in  each  of  the  blocks  between  37th  street 
and  30th  street. 

The  so-called  *'30th  street  yard"  occupies  at  the 
present  time  the  blocks  between  30th  street  and  37th 
street  and  11th  and  12th  avenues,  between  30th  street 

47 


and  33d  street  and  11th  and  10th  avenues,  and  between 
29th  and  30th  streets  and  10th  and  9th  avenues.  It 
completely  closes  31st  street  between  10th  and  12th 
avenues,  32d  street  for  practically  the  same  distance, 
and  33d  street  from  11th  to  12th  avenues.  35th  and 
36th  streets  between  11th  and  12th  avenues  are  also 
incorporated  in  the  yard  area.  11th  avenue  within  the 
yard  area  is  crossed  by  a  network  of  busy  and  dan- 
gerous tracks,  and  there  is  an  extremely  dangerous 
crossing  at  10th  avenue  and  30th  street  which  is  only 
partial^  relieved  by  an  elevated  foot-passenger  bridge. 
From  a  City  standpoint  the  yard  could  hardly  be  more 
poorly  arranged,  forming  as  it  does  a  very  serious  bar- 
rier between  important  portions  of  the  City  and  the 
waterfront  and  making  travel  over  three  north  and 
south  thoroughfares  dangerous  and  inconvenient.  At 
the  same  time  the  yard,  even  in  its  present  condition,  is 
a  very  important  dehvery  point  largely  used  for  the 
delivery  of  articles  of  food  supply.  A  large  quantity  of 
milk  is  delivered  at  this  point  and  quantities  of  the 
heavier  and  less  perishable  vegetables.  The  station 
handles  the  largest  amount  of  hay  coming  into  the  City. 
The  aimual  deliveries  of  this  product  alone  are  well 
over  130,000  tons.  The  yard  is  served  by  float  bridges 
between  32d  street  and  33d  street,  and  the  railroad 
leases  from  the  City  three  piers  which  are  operated  in 
connection  with  the  yard. 

The  plans  for  the  improvement  of  this  terminal 
provide  for  its  complete  reconstruction  as  a  two-level 
freight  station.  The  main  line  tracks  will  enter  an 
upper  level  from  the  elevated  structure  on  12th  avenue, 
where  they  will  be  admirably  arranged  to  serve  a  series 
of  ample  platforms  and  driveways.     All  of  the  cross- 

48 


streets  between  31st  street  and  33d  street  will  be  recon- 
structed as  two-level  thoroughfares,  the  upper  level 
giving  trucking  access  to  the  main  platforms  on  the 
upper  story  of  the  station.  31st  street  and  32d  street 
will  be  so  treated  between  10th  avenue  and  12th  avenue, 
33d  street,  34th  street,  35th  street  and  36th  street  be- 
tween 11th  and  12th  avenues. 

The  lower  yard  level  will  be  served  by  float  bridges 
between  35th  street  and  36th  street.  The  tracks  will 
necessarily  continue  on  the  surface  of  12th  avenue  and 
the  marginal  way  between  these  float  bridges  and  the 
piers  leased  from  the  City.  They  will  not  extend  east 
of  the  west  hne  of  11th  avenue,  however,  which  will 
mean  that  both  10th  and  11th  avenues  will  be  entirely 
reheved  of  the  nuisance  of  grade  crossings.  The  City 
has  insisted  that  all  the  cross-streets  and  avenues  on 
both  levels  shall  remain  as  City  streets  and  therefore 
open  to  all  persons  without  discrimination.  The  City 
will  engage  to  clean,  light  and  police  both  levels  to  the 
same  extent  that  other  City  streets  are  so  served,  im- 
posing upon  the  railroad  any  additional  burden  of  car- 
ing for  the  streets  which  may  be  caused  by  their  use  as 
a  portion  of  the  terminal  system.  The  proposed  facili- 
ties at  this  point  have  been  most  favorably  commented 
upon  by  the  Merchants'  Association  of  New  York, 
many  of  whose  members  have  suffered  from  the  intoler- 
able delays  in  trucking  through  the  present  antiquated 
terminal.  A  report  of  the  Association,  made  on  June 
1,  1916,  characterizes  the  new  30th  street  terminal  as 

"admirably  arranged  for  the  avoidance  of  con- 
gestion and  the  speedy  movement  of  wagon 
traffic,  thereby  minimizing  the  delays  now  im- 

49 


posing  a  heavy  burden  of  expense  upon  ship- 
pers." 

The  westerly  side  of  the  yard  has  been  substantially 
modified  from  the  plan  as  originally  proposed  by  the 
Railroad  Company.  In  the  plans  which  they  filed 
under  the  statute  the  main  line  running  tracks  were 
carried  along  the  bulkhead,  instead  of  on  12th  avenue, 
as  now  arranged.  The  Dock  Department  was  unwill- 
ing to  consent  to  tracks  on  the  bulkhead,  because  it 
was  of  the  opinion  that  the  piers  were  so  located  that 
it  might  be  very  desirable  at  some  future  time  to  provide 
for  their  lengthening.  In  all  probability  the  official 
government  pierhead  line  is  as  far  outshore  as  it  will 
be  allowed  to  extend.  The  only  opportunity,  there- 
fore, of  securing  any  greater  pier  length  is  through 
inshore  cutting.  Under  the  pending  plan  sufficient 
space  is  left  to  permit  the  lengthening  of  the  piers  to 
800  feet,  which  is  sufficiently  long  to  accommodate  the 
largest  type  of  freight  and  passenger  steamers  which 
it  is  reasonable  to  expect  will  seek  accommodation  in 
this  vicinity. 

The  Railroad  Company  desired  as  part  of  the  settle- 
ment that  the  City  should  cede  to  it  title  to  several  of 
the  piers  which  are  to  be  connected  by  tracks  with  the 
30th  street  terminal.  The  City  was  not  willing,  how- 
ever, to  alienate  any  portion  of  this  section  of  its  water- 
front and  such  waterfront  facilities  as  the  railroad 
reasonably  requires  will  be  granted  to  it  under  leases. 

The  main  line  tracks  south  of  the  30th  street  termi- 
nal will  be  reduced  to  two.  They  will  be  carried  on 
an  elevated  structure  extending  through  30th  street 
from  12th  avenue  to  a  point  about  250  feet  west  of 

50 


10th  avenue,  where  they  will  curve  into  private  prop- 
erty. They  will  continue  south  on  a  private  right  of 
way  west  of  10th  avenue  to  a  point  between  West  16th 
and  West  17th  streets,  where  they  will  be  carried 
across  10th  avenue  to  a  point  slightly  south  of  15th 
street,  continuing  on  a  private  right  of  way  to  Little 
West  12th  street.  At  this  point  they  will  curve  slightly 
to  the  east,  crossing  the  Gansevoort  Market  site  to 
private  property  on  the  westerly  side  of  Washington 
street,  and  will  continue  along  a  private  right  of  way 
to  a  new  terminal,  bounded  by  Canal  street.  West  street, 
West  Houston  street  and  Washington  street.  At 
Gansevoort  street  it  is  proposed  to  permit  the  construc- 
tion of  an  elevated  spur  track  extending  west  on  Ganse- 
voort street  to  the  waterfront  and  along  the  marginal 
way  from  Gansevoort  street  to  a  point  slightly  south 
of  Little  West  12th  street,  to  serve  the  West  Washing- 
ton Market.  The  City  reserves  the  right,  however,  to 
compel  the  removal  of  so  much  of  this  elevated  struc- 
ture as  is  west  of  the  east  Hne  of  West  street  at  any 
time  upon  demand  of  the  Board  of  Estimate  and  Ap- 
portionment. This  reservation  has  been  insisted  upon 
in  order  to  keep  the  entire  marginal  way  open  for  any 
possible  future  terminal  system  which  may  require  its 
use.  South  of  30th  street  the  Railroad  Company  will 
secure  from  the  City  the  necessary  overhead  easements 
for  the  crossing  of  streets  between  30th  street  and  the 
new  southerly  terminal.  All  of  the  surface  tracks  now 
maintained  by  the  Company  in  10th  avenue.  West 
street,  Canal  street  and  Hudson  street  will  be  aban- 
doned upon  the  completion  of  the  new  line. 

The    terminal    between    Canal    street    and    West 
Houston  street  will  be  a  substitute  for  the  present 

51 


freight  station  maintained  at  St.  John's  Park.  It  is 
necessary  to  relocate  it  because  of  the  difficulty  in  carry- 
ing the  new  elevated  structure  across  the  existing  pas- 
senger elevated  on  Greenwich  street.  In  order  to  pro- 
vide sufficient  area  for  the  new  terminal  it  will  be  neces- 
sary to  close  Spring  street  and  Charlton  street  between 
Washington  and  West  streets.  The  capacity  of  this 
terminal  w411  be  about  241  cars. 

The  entire  new  line  will  be  operated  by  electricity, 
the  statute  providing  that  the  agreement  between  the 
Company  and  the  City  shall  provide  for  a  specified  time, 
not  more  than  four  years  from  the  date  of  the  agree- 
ment, 

"within  which  the  use  of  steam  locomotives  upon 
any  portion  of  the  railroad  of  said  company  cov- 
ered by  such  agreement  shall  absolutely  cease 
and  be  discontinued,  except  only  in  case  of  neces- 
sity arising  from  the  temporary  failure  of  such 
other  motive  power  as  may  be  lawfully  adopted." 

A  penalty  of  $500  a  day  for  failure  to  comply  with 
this  provision  of  the  statute  is  provided. 

The  elevated  structure  will  be  of  modern  and  im- 
proved type,  designed  to  reduce  the  noise  and  dirt  of 
operation  to  a  minimum. 

There  remains  to  consider  the  effect  which  the  adop- 
tion of  the  plan  would  have  upon  the  waterfront  of  the 
City  and  upon  its  park  system,  and  also  the  financial 
terms  involved  in  the  various  real  estate  exchanges 
and  expenditures  by  the  Railroad  for  matters  of  civic 
improvement. 


62 


IV 

THE  EFFECT  OF  THE  WEST  SIDE  IM- 
PROVEMENT UPON  THE  DEVELOP- 
MENT OF  THE  WATERFRONT 

T  T  has  been  repeatedly  stated  by  those  in  opposition 
'■'  to  the  adoption  of  the  plans  that  the  effect  of  per- 
mitting the  New  York  Central  to  construct  an  elevated 
on  a  private  right  of  way  through  the  blocks  south  of 
30th  street  as  proposed  would  be  to  give  to  that  Com- 
pany a  monopoly  of  service  to  what  has  been  called  a 
terminal  belt  extending  from  30th  street  to  Canal  street 
and  from  the  waterfront  to  9th  avenue.  This  argument 
is  almost  invariably  coupled  with  advocacy  of  a  plan 
for  a  municipally-owned  freight  railroad  along  the  mar- 
ginal way  to  which  all  of  the  railroads,  including  the 
New  York  Central,  should  have  access.  The  fact  that 
the  railroads  themselves  do  not  show  the  shghtest  in- 
terest in  such  a  project  does  not  seem  to  furnish  a  suf- 
ficient reason  in  the  minds  of  persons  holding  this  view 
for  the  City's  failure  to  adopt  this  alleged  solution  of 
the  lower  Manhattan  waterfront  problem. 

The  City  is  faced  with  two  alternatives : 

(1 )  It  may  turn  a  deaf  ear  to  the  unanimous  opin- 
ion of  the  operating  officials  of  the  New  Jersey  rail- 
roads against  such  a  plan  and  proceed  to  expend 
municipal  funds  upon  a  project  which  presents  no  pros- 
pect of  adequate  financial  return. 

(2)  It  may  refuse  either  to  embark  upon  such  an 

5S 


enterprise  at  the  present  time  and  at  the  same  time  refuse 
to  permit  the  New  York  Central  Railroad  to  improve 
its  line  with  its  o^vn  private  capital,  upon  the  theory  that 
nothing  is  to  be  done  for  the  present  relief  of  the  com- 
merce of  the  port,  and  that  a  continuance  of  present 
conditions  shall  remain  indefinitely  until  such  time  as  the 
New  Jersey  railroads  change  their  policy. 

To  adopt  the  first  course  of  action  would  appear  in- 
defensible. No  one  quahfied  to  speak  from  experience 
has  been  able  to  demonstrate  beyond  question  that  a 
marginal  railroad  is  the  correct  form  of  solution  for 
the  pecuhar  problems  connected  with  the  reorganization 
of  the  North  River  waterfront.  It  is  certainly  true 
that  the  piers  are  neither  of  a  type  nor  do  they  handle 
a  class  of  business  which  a  marginal  railroad  is  equipped 
to  serve  efficiently.  It  would  not  be  possible,  without 
an  enormous  expenditure  of  money  for  reconstruction, 
even  were  it  desirable,  to  establish  the  type  of  develop- 
ment along  the  North  River  waterfront  w^hich  has  been 
so  successfully  worked  out  at  the  Bush  Terminal  in 
BrookljTi,  in  which  piers  and  upland  warehouses  and 
industrial  buildings  are  tied  together  with  railroad 
tracks.  This  is  so  perfectly  obvious  that  certain  advo- 
cates of  the  marginal  railroad  plan  have  disclaimed  any 
intention  of  seeking  to  connect  the  piers  with  such  a 
road  and  have  urged  its  construction  simply  as  a  feeder 
for  the  blocks  to  the  east  of  the  marginal  street.  The 
chief  purpose  of  such  a  road  would  be  to  furnish  spur- 
track  connection  to  private  property.  Such  a  connec- 
tion is  only  economical  and  desirable  where  the  property 
is  developed  with  a  type  of  industrj^  which  requires 
service  in  car-load  lots.  It  is  the  large  factory  of  rela- 
tively heavy  products  and  the  warehouse  handling  bulk 

54 


freight  that  requires  this  type  of  railroad  service.  The 
Borough  of  Manhattan,  owing  to  the  high  real  estate 
values,  is  progressively  becoming  less  and  less  the  place 
for  this  kind  of  business.  It  is  an  extremely  important 
manufacturing  center,  but  the  class  of  goods  made  are 
the  relatively  light  and  expensive  products  which  can 
bear  the  high  overhead  real  estate  costs. 

It  is  at  least  extremely  doubtful,  therefore,  even 
were  the  various  trunk  line  railroads  in  a  position  to 
furnish  side-tracks,  whether  they  could  secure  an 
amount  of  business  which  would  justify  the  capital  cost 
involved  in  the  connections. 

Apart  from  the  service  to  shippers  located  di- 
rectly on  the  line,  it  is  urged  that  such  a  terminal 
road  would  greatly  improve  the  general  freight  distribu- 
tion by  the  various  railroads  through  making  it  possible 
to  estabhsh  adequate  inland  stations  in  place  of  the  con- 
gested waterside  terminals  maintained  by  them  at  the 
present  time.  To  accomplish  this  result  it  is  not  neces- 
sary to  construct  a  main  running  line  through  the  pubhc 
streets.  The  Baltimore  &  Ohio  terminal  at  26th  street 
is  an  illustration  of  one  form  of  improved  terminal 
which  is  capable  of  development.  It  is  not  practically 
feasible  to  provide  adequate  classification  and  storage 
space  for  cars  on  the  valuable  real  estate  of  Manhattan 
Island  and  whether  floating  is  to  be  continued  or 
whether  some  form  of  direct  rail  connection  with  New 
Jersey  is  worked  out,  it  must  nevertheless  remain  true 
that  the  bulk  of  cargo  classification  must  be  done  on 
the  relatively  cheap  land  back  of  the  New  Jersey  water- 
front. 

These  objections  should  certainly  be  satisfactorily 
explained  away  before  the  City  undertakes  the  very 

55 


large  expenditure  necessary  for  the  building  of  a  Man- 
hattan freight  line. 

The  second  alternative,  of  denying  to  the  New  York 
Central  the  right  to  improve  its  service  in  the  hope  that 
a  way  would  be  found  of  providing  a  joint  facility  which 
it  may  use  in  common  with  the  other  railroads,  is  the 
surest  way  of  blocking  any  improvement  in  the  ter- 
minal system  of  Manhattan  Island. 

The  present  plan  steers  a  middle  course  between 
these  two  positions.  It  frankly  treats  the  New  York 
Central  problem  as  one  which,  owing  to  conditions, 
must  be  handled  independently.  At  the  same  time,  by 
removing  the  road  from  its  direct  occupation  of  a  water- 
front street  and  forcing  it  into  a  privately-owned  right 
of  way,  it  keeps  open  the  possibility  for  any  form  of 
water-front  terminal,  including  a  marginal  railroad,  if 
that  be  proved  desirable,  at  any  time  in  the  future.  The 
soundness  of  this  solution  is  recognized  by  the  Mer- 
chants' Association  of  New  York,  an  association  which 
is  certainly  qualified  to  speak  with  authority  upon  this 
phase  of  the  problem.  In  the  report  of  its  Committee  on 
Harbor,  Docks  and  Terminals  made  after  a  thorough 
examination  of  the  pending  plans,  it  says: 

"It  is  highly  important  that  the  New  York 
Central  Railroad  be  not  granted  such  rights,  or 
so  confirmed  in  those  now  held  by  it,  as  to  pre- 
clude the  provision  of  necessary  facilities  for 
other  railroads.  To  that  end  it  is  essential  that 
space  for  tracks  to  serve  other  railroads  be  re- 
served by  the  City  along  all  portions  of  the 
waterfront  where  such  use  is,  or  may  hereafter 
become,  desirable.'* 

56 


"Such  reservation  is  made  under  the  pro- 
posed plans.  From  59th  street  southward  the 
New  York  Central  tracks  are  so  located  upon 
12th  Avenue  and  the  marginal  way  as  to  permit 
the  location,  to  the  westward,  of  additional  tracks 
for  the  use  of  other  railroads,  with  unobstructed 
access  to  piers  and  bulkheads.  The  City  retains 
the  fee  to  all  cross  streets  leading  to  the  water- 
front south  of  59th  street,  and  can  thereby  per- 
mit other  railroads  to  cross  the  hues  of  the  New 
York  Central  if  required.  The  same  reserva- 
tion will  provide  proper  approaches  for  a  freight 
tunnel  from  New  Jersey,  should  such  a  tunnel 
hereafter  be  found  desirable." 

Since  the  making  of  this  report  an  additional  safe- 
guard against  a  possible  monopoly  by  the  New  York 
Central  Railroad  has  been  secured  by  the  Port  and 
Terminal  Committee  of  the  Board  of  Estimate  and  Ap- 
portionment in  a  concession  by  the  Railroad  to  permit 
the  condemnation  of  sub-surface  rights  at  all  points 
south  of  30th  street,  where  the  Company  owns  the  fee 
of  private  property  for  its  running  tracks  except  under 
its  terminals.  In  other  words,  the  Railroad  Company 
will  place  itself  precisely  in  the  position  of  a  private 
owner  of  such  property  and  will  contract  not  to  raise 
in  a  condemnation  proceeding  the  defence  that  the  prop- 
erty is  already  devoted  to  a  public  use.  The  only  re- 
striction placed  upon  such  right  of  condemnation  is 
to  be  that  the  property  is  required  either  by  the  City  for 
a  municipal  terminal  system,  or  by  a  railroad  or  combi- 
nation of  railroads  proposing  a  terminal  approved  by 
the  City  authorities.  This  additional  safeguard  would 
make  it  possible  for  a  terminal  system  entering  Man- 

57 


hattan  by  tunnel  to  construct  subterranean  yards,  if 
such  are  feasible,  under  the  private  property  owned 
by  the  New  York  Central  Railroad.  It  removes  the 
last  possible  reasonable  objection  to  the  private  right 
of  way  which  the  New  York  Central  is  to  acquire. 

Certain  objectors  to  the  plan  contend  that  the  City, 
as  part  of  the  agreement,  should  compel  the  New  York 
Central  to  contract  to  open  the  use,  not  only  of  its 
running  tracks,  but  of  its  terminals  to  any  road  or 
roads  willing  to  pay  a  sum  proportionate  to  the  use 
made  of  these  f acihties  at  any  time  in  the  future.  This 
proposition,  in  its  last  analysis,  is  simply  a  suggestion 
that  the  New  York  Central  Railroad,  after  making  a 
vast  capital  expenditure  to  build  up  business  which 
does  not  exist  at  the  present  time,  should  receive  no  pro- 
tection, but  should  be  compelled  to  allow  other  com- 
panies to  secure  as  much  tonnage  as  possible  without 
any  financial  risk  to  themselves. 

So  far  as  the  suggestion  that  the  City  authorities 
should  compel  the  various  New  Jersey  roads  to  use  a 
municipal  elevated  structure  whether  they  wanted  to  or 
not  through  the  City's  control  over  waterfront  leases  is 
concerned,  it  should  be  remembered  that  most  of  these 
leases  have  a  very  substantial  number  of  years  to  run, 
some  not  expiring  until  1941.  It  should  also  be  borne 
in  mind  that  the  alternative  of  failure  to  permit  the 
continuance  of  waterfront  occupation  under  these  leases 
is  not  necessarily  joining  in  a  municipal  railroad  plan. 
The  companies  are  always  in  a  position  to  discontinue 
direct  service  to  Manhattan  and  compel  New  York  ship- 
pers to  truck  their  freight  to  and  from  the  New  Jersey 
terminals.  If  there  were  no  active  and  efficient  com- 
petition by  the  one  railroad  giving  through  rail  service 

68 


to  Manliattan  it  is  safe  to  assume  that  this  possibiHty 
would  become  a  probabihty.  It  is  not  necessary  to 
dwell  upon  the  disastrous  effect  which  such  a  course 
would  have  upon  the  commerce  of  New  York. 

On  the  other  hand  it  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that 
the  improvement  of  the  New  York  Central's  freight 
terminal  will  greatly  stimulate  the  activities  of  its  rivals 
in  seeking  to  remove  the  disadvantages  which  they  will 
be  under  with  their  inferior  water-side  terminals  by  the 
improvement  of  those  terminals  as  far  as  possible,  or 
by  the  working  out  of  practical  plans  for  inshore  sta- 
tions. In  short,  it  will  introduce  a  competitive  element 
which  is  now  largely  lacking  and  which  seems  to  be  the 
only  method  which  can  be  used  to  compel  improvement. 

Whether  that  improvement  will  take  the  form  of  a 
jointly  operated  terminal  railroad,  the  development  of 
one  or  more  inshore  unit  terminals,  or  the  modernization 
of  the  waterside  stations,  or  some  other  plan,  only  the 
future  can  determine.  The  fact  remains,  however,  that 
there  is  nothing  in  the  settlement  which  the  City  now 
proposes  with  the  New  York  Central  which  will  stand 
in  the  way  of  reorganization  by  the  other  railroads. 
With  the  marginal  street  entirely  cleared  from  occu- 
pancy by  the  New  York  Central  and  with  full  subsur- 
face rights  reserved  under  its  main  line  private  property 
south  of  30th  street,  there  should  be  ample  opportunity 
to  work  out  whatever  plans  may  ultimately  be  agreed 
upon. 

At  a  number  of  other  points  along  the  North  river 
waterfront  the  proposed  settlement  will  open  the  way 
for  important  changes  and  improvements  which  should 
prove  of  the  greatest  value  to  the  City.     Nowhere  will 

59 


these  be  more  striking  than  in  the  possibilities  wliich  is 
presented  for  the  improvement  of  the  important  water- 
front along  Riverside  Park  and  Riverside  Drive  from 
72nd  street  to  153rd  street. 

At  the  present  time  the  jurisdiction  of  the  water- 
front between  72nd  street  and  129th  street  is  under  the 
Department  of  Parks,  with  the  exception  of  two  areas 
reserved  for  commercial  use  under  the  Department 
of  Docks  and  Ferries,  one  at  79th  street  and  the  other 
at  96th  street.  Unfortunately,  neither  of  these  areas 
have  been  developed  in  the  manner  in  which  they 
should  have  been  in  view  of  their  location,  in 
direct  proximity  to  Riverside  Park  and  the  highly 
improved  residential  property  fronting  on  Riverside 
Drive.  At  both  79th  street  and  96th  street  former 
administrations  found  it  necessary  to  locate  facilities 
for  the  disposal  of  City  refuse,  largely  because 
there  was  no  available  waterfront  to  the  south 
sufficiently  near  to  the  sections  served  to  make  its  use 
possible.  At  96th  street  there  are  two  large  and  un- 
sightly coal  pockets,  which  largely  serve  local  needs,  and 
which  can  only  be  located  at  some  other  point  reason- 
ably near  to  their  present  location.  The  City  has  not 
had  an  available  site  where  they  could  be  placed.  So 
far  as  the  disposal  of  the  street  cleaning  refuse  is  con- 
cerned the  Dock  Department  has  already  done  as  much 
as  it  could,  in  co-operation  with  the  Department  of 
Street  Cleaning,  to  render  the  existing  plant  at  79th 
street  as  httle  objectionable  as  possible.  The  Depart- 
ment's engineers  designed  a  covered  structure  which 
prevents  the  spreading  of  dust  and  screens  the  waterside 
operations  from  the  Park  and  the  Drive.  It  is  indica- 
tive of  the  lack  of  co-operation  and  spirit  of  unreason- 

60 


able  opposition  which  is  so  frequently  met  with  in 
attempts  of  the  City  officials  to  improve  conditions  that 
certain  property  owners  attempted  to  restrain  the  erec- 
tion of  this  structure  by  injunction  despite  the  fact  it 
was  stated  at  the  time  that  it  was  intended  only  as  a 
temporary  relief  from  conditions  which  had  become 
almost  intolerable.  In  addition  to  the  very  great  im- 
provement which  the  erection  of  the  cover  secured,  it 
has  saved  the  City  $30  a  day,  which  was  being  paid  to 
the  lessees  of  the  private  dumpingboard  previously 
used.  It  was  stated  at  the  time  when  it  was  built  that 
eventually  it  would  be  possible  either  to  remove  the 
cover  and  place  it  at  some  other  location  or  to  convert 
it  at  shght  expense  into  a  permanent  waterfront  shelter 
similar  to  other  city  recreation  piers.  At  any  rate,  the 
steel  cover  has  more  than  paid  for  itself,  even  if  it  should 
be  determined  to  convert  it  into  scrap.  The  City  ad- 
ministration in  reducing  the  nuisance  of  the  open  dump 
by  the  covered  method  acted  solely  in  the  interest  of 
the  residents  of  Riverside  Drive  and  the  pubhc  using 
the  Park. 

Unfortunately  there  has  been  a  very  large  amount 
of  public  misunderstanding  of  the  attitude  of  the  De- 
partment of  Docks  and  Ferries  with  reference  to  the 
entire  Riverside  section,  produced  to  a  great  extent  by 
a  report  submitted  by  my  predecessor,  the  Hon.  Calvin 
Tomkins,  jointly  with  the  Hon.  Charles  B.  Stover,  a 
former  Commissioner  of  Parks  for  Manhattan  and 
Richmond,  on  December  27, 1910.  This  report  frankly 
recommended  the  commercialization  of  the  entire  River- 
side Park  waterfront.  It  pointed  out  that  it  was  pos- 
sible to  fill  a  considerable  area  outshore  of  the  Park  and 
it  proposed  that  a  marginal  way  250  feet  in  width  be 

01 


constructed,  to  be  used  as  a  landing  stage  and  commer- 
cial wharf.  As  outlined  in  the  report  of  the  then  Com- 
missioners of  Docks  and  Parks,  the  plan  was  intended  to 

''include  a  series  of  waterfront  sheds,  with  a 
promenade  for  park  purposes,  and  the  bridging- 
over  of  the  New  York  Central  tracks,  the  whole 
plan  of  development  to  have  for  its  ultimate 
ideal  conditions  such  as  are  found  at  Antwerp, 
Vienna  and  other  foreign  cities  that  have  sought 
artistic  and  commercial  use  of  the  waterfront." 

It  was  also  proposed  to  construct  a  great  number 
of  commercial  piers  and  float  bridges  at  various  points 
and  to  permit  an  extension  of  rail  facilities,  not  only 
of  the  New  York  Central,  but  of  such  of  the  other  rail- 
roads as  desired  to  construct  tracks  to  the  west  of  the 
New  York  Central  Company's  line. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  in  the  discussion  of  the 
present  New  York  Central  plan  at  least  one  of  the  civic 
associations  appearing  before  the  Board  of  Estimate 
and  Aportionment  recommended  the  building  of  a  com- 
mercial marginal  way  as  suggested  in  the  report  re- 
ferred to.  The  present  administration  of  the  Depart- 
ment of  Docks  and  Ferries,  however,  is  opposed  to  the 
further  commercialization  of  the  Riverside  Park  water- 
front, and,  in  fact,  believes  that  there  should  be  a  very 
material  reduction  in  the  use  of  the  present  reserved 
commercial  areas. 

The  suggestion  of  Mr.  Tomkins  and  Mr.  Stover  was 
specifically  repudiated  by  the  Board  of  Estimate  and 
Apportionment  with  the  exception  of  that  portion  of 
the  report  which  suggested  the  reclaiming  of  a  certain 
amount  of  the  river  by  outshore  filling.    This  has  been 

02 


going  on  for  a  considerable  time,  it  being  the  intention 
to  use  it,  not  for  commercial  purposes,  but  for  the  west- 
ward extension  of  Riverside  Park.  Apparently  the  fact 
that  the  filling  was  going  on  because  the  City  was  able 
to  secure  such  filling  at  the  minimum  of  cost,  has  misled 
some  into  the  behef  that  it  is  the  first  step  toward  carry- 
ing out  a  plan  for  a  commercial  wharf  and  an  exten- 
sion of  railroad  facilities. 

As  indicative  of  the  attitude  of  the  present  adminis- 
tration of  the  Dock  Department  it  is  only  necessary 
to  point  out  that  one  of  my  first  acts  as  Commissioner 
of  Docks  was  to  withdraw  an  application  which  had  been 
made  to  the  Secretary  of  War  for  the  extension  of 
pierhead  and  bulkhead  lines  in  the  79th  street  and  96th 
street  sections.  As  the  first  step  toward  reducing  the 
present  commercial  uses  the  Sinking  Fund  Commission, 
upon  my  recommendation,  eliminated  three  unbuilt 
piers  from  the  City  Plan  for  the  improvement  of  the 
79th  street  district,  substituting  the  short  horizontal 
pier  or  platform  upon  which  the  covered  refuse  disposal 
plant  is  now  located.  It  is  the  ultimate  intention  to 
remove  all  of  the  existing  piers  at  79th  street  and  96th 
street,  with  the  exception  of  one  pier  at  each  location, 
which  will  be  the  minimum  acconmiodation  necessary 
to  provide  for  river  traflSc  and  for  such  purely  local 
business  as  requires  pier  space  in  the  Riverside  Drive 
section.  As  already  pointed  out,  the  greatest  difiiculty 
which  stands  in  the  way  of  removing  the  street  cleaning 
plants  and  the  coal  pockets  from  their  present  locations 
has  been  the  impossibility  of  finding  a  suitable  substi- 
tute location  within  the  area  to  be  served  by  them.  The 
pending  West  Side  plans  oifer  an  opportunity  for  the 
acquisition  of  an  admirably  adapted  new  location,  be- 
es 


tween  70th  street  and  72d  street.  The  Railroad  Com- 
pany agrees  as  part  of  the  settlement  to  cede  to  the 
City  two  blocks  of  waterfront  and  land  under  water 
between  70th  street  and  72d  street,  which  can  be  reached 
across  the  viaduct  which  it  is  proposed  to  build  in  the 
line  of  70th  street.  The  Dock  Department  has  already 
prepared  detailed  plans  for  the  development  of  this 
area  by  the  construction  of  three  piers.  The  most  south- 
erly pier,  in  the  line  of  West  70th  street,  can  be  de- 
veloped as  a  large  modern  street  cleaning  disposal  plant, 
equipped  to  take  care  of  the  entire  territory  now  served 
by  the  dumping-boards  at  79th  street  and  96th  street. 
At  West  71st  street  a  pier  can  be  built  which  will  furnish 
adequate  accommodation  for  the  coal  dealers  now  occu- 
pying coal  pockets  along  Riverside  Drive  and  leave 
room  for  necessary  expansion  and  for  new  business. 
Directly  south  of  72d  street  it  is  proposed  to  construct 
an  open  pier  which,  in  addition  to  furnishing  accommo- 
dation for  part  of  the  conmierce  now  using  piers  at 
79th  street  and  96th  street,  will  help  to  serve  as  a  screen 
between  the  Riverside  Drive  section  and  the  coal  and 
street  cleaning  piers  to  the  south. 

With  the  clearing-off  of  the  present  Dock  Depart- 
ment areas  there  will  become  available  space  for  the 
provision  of  a  water-front  facility  which  is  very  badly 
needed  by  the  City,  namely,  proper  landings  for  the 
officers  and  men  of  the  United  States  Navy  and  of  visit- 
ing fleets  and  as  accommodation  for  the  safe  and  proper 
handhng  of  the  great  crowds  of  people  who  desire  to 
visit  the  warships  during  the  time  of  naval  reviews. 
The  present  arrangements  could  hardly  be  worse.  Upon 
the  arrival  of  a  visiting  fleet  at  the  present  time  it  is 
necessary  for  the  Dock  Department  to  improvise  land- 

64 


ing  stages  at  various  points  along  the  Xorth  River  by  the 
driving  of  piles  and  the  mooring  to  them  of  temporary 
float  stages.  Tliis  is  an  expensive,  cumbersome  and 
highly  unsatisfactory  method  of  dealing  with  the  situa- 
tion, but  it  is  the  only  possible  solution  so  long  as  the 
City  has  no  provision  for  permanent  naval  landings. 
Under  present  conditions  the  floats  are  placed  in  the 
midst  of  commercial  developments,  with  which  they 
interfere  and  which  present  unsightly  surroundings  en- 
tirely unworthy  of  the  reception  which  the  great  Port 
of  New  York  should  give  to  its  naval  guests.  The  ac- 
commodations for  the  general  public  are  equally  unsat- 
isfactory and  inadequate.  The  Hudson-Fulton  Water 
Gate  appears  to  be  a  long  way  in  the  future. 

It  is  proposed  to  construct  at  least  two  naval  land- 
ings in  permanent  form,  one  at  79th  street  and  the  other 
at  96th  street,  which  can  be  used  at  all  times  for  pubhc 
landing  stages  and  on  special  occasions  will  serve  as 
naval  landings.  If  it  is  decided  to  leave  the  covered 
structure  now  used  by  the  Street  Cleaning  Department 
at  77th  street  this  building  can  be  readily  converted  into 
a  shelter  for  use  in  connection  with  the  landing  stage. 
If  not  it  can  be  removed  to  the  new  pier  at  70th  street. 
With  these  improvements  completed  the  whole  outshore 
development  of  the  Riverside  Park  section  will  be 
worthy  of  its  inshore  surroundings. 

The  City  will  acquire  from  the  Railroad  Company 
as  part  of  the  settlement  the  title  to  various  parcels  of 
land  under  water  between  143d  street  and  153d  street, 
which  will  give  it  unbroken  title  between  these  points. 
There  will  then  be  presented  an  opportunity  to  provide 
for  a  waterfront  improvement,  which  is  very  much 
needed  as  part  of  the  recreational  facihties  of  the  City. 

65 


With  its  wonderful  waterfront  it  is  surprising  that  the 
officials  charged  with  the  supervision  of  public  recrea- 
tion have  apparently  made  no  effort  in  the  past  to 
develop  proper  accommodations  for  the  owners  of  the 
large  number  of  craft  which  furnish  pleasure  to 
thousands  of  our  citizens.  The  boat  clubs  have  been 
allowed  to  estabhsh  themselves  indiscriminately  at 
various  points  along  the  Hudson  and  Harlem  rivers 
with  but  slight  attention  paid  to  the  suitability  of  loca- 
tion, and  practically  no  supervision  as  to  the  character 
of  structure  which  they  were  permitted  to  erect.  They 
have  too  frequently  been  placed  in  the  midst  of  sur- 
roundings which  discouraged  the  building  of  a  proper 
form  of  club  structure  and  which  made  it  impossible  to 
develop  the  proper  class  of  membership.  The  uncer- 
tainty of  tenure  and  the  surroundings  in  which  they 
have  been  placed  have  presented  but  shght  incentive 
to  the  building  of  club  houses  of  a  type  to  reflect  credit 
upon  the  City's  waterfront.  It  has  generally  been  felt 
that  the  conditions  were  temporary,  and  that  some 
day  there  would  be  worked  out  a  proper  and  consistent 
policy  for  the  handling  of  the  matter. 

The  result  has  been  that  instead  of  possessing  a 
boat  club  section  which  is  a  credit  to  the  Riverside  sec- 
tion, we  have  a  conglomeration  of  shanties,  many  of 
which  are  discreditable  both  in  appearance  and  in  the 
manner  of  their  use. 

Not  only  are  the  club  houses  themselves  unsatis- 
factory, but  the  provisions  for  small  boat  anchorage  on 
the  Hudson  River  are  entirely  inadequate  and  in  many 
instances  actually  obstructive  to  navigation.  The  boats 
have,  in  most  cases,  been  moored  indiscriminately  in  the 

66 


stream,  with  no  protecting  shelter,  and  frequently  in 
the  line  of  operation  of  the  river  traffic. 

The  waterfront  between  143d  street  and  153d  street 
is  a  natural  cove  approximately  half  a  mile  in  length, 
extending  about  1,000  feet  inshore  of  the  existing 
harbor  lines  and  admirably  adapted  for  a  yacht  basin 
and  anchorage.  It  is  proposed  by  the  Dock  Depart- 
ment, provided  the  necessary  land  under  water  is 
secured  as  part  of  the  west  side  settlement,  to  continue 
the  marginal  way  which  is  provided  for  in  the  plans 
south  of  143d  street  in  a  symmetrical  curve  between 
143d  street  and  153d  street.  With  a  relatively  small 
cost  for  bulkheading  and  filling,  this  will  provide  a 
marginal  way  half  a  mile  in  length  and  150  or  200  feet 
in  width  which  can  be  reached  conveniently  either  along 
the  marginal  way  from  the  south  or  across  the  bridge 
which  is  to  be  built  in  the  line  of  West  145th  street. 
It  is  proposed  that  on  this  new  marginal  way  the  City 
shall  permit  the  erection  from  time  to  time  of  houses 
by  such  boat  clubs  as  prove  to  the  satisfaction  of  the 
Department  that  they  are  legitimately  entitled  to  ac- 
coromodation.  These  houses  should  be  of  a  uniform 
type,  of  a  design  to  be  approved  by  the  Municipal  Art 
Commission  of  the  City,  and  maintained  under  strict 
supervision  to  insure  the  proper  use  of  the  property. 
The  Department  has  already  requested  and  has  secured 
the  co-operation  of  the  various  boat  clubs  along  the 
waterfront  in  the  appointment  of  a  committee  which  will 
work  in  co-operation  with  the  Commissioner  of  Docks 
in  investigating  and  passing  upon  appHcations  for  new 
boat-house  privileges. 

Considerable  criticism  has  been  levelled  at  the  Com- 
missioner of  Docks  for  his  recommendations  with  re- 

67 


spect  to  the  establishment  of  this  boat  house  section 
by  certain  persons  who  have  felt  that  instead  of  devot- 
ing this  natural  basin  to  yachting  purposes  it  should 
be  filled  in  and  made  a  portion  of  the  park  and  play- 
ground system  of  the  City.  It  is  submitted  that  those 
interested  in  water  sports  are  as  much  entitled  to  con- 
sideration at  the  hands  of  the  City  authorities  as  those 
engaging  in  other  forms  of  recreation.  The  New  York 
Central  plans  provide  elsewhere  incidental  opportunity 
for  very  largely  increased  park  and  playground  spaces, 
and  in  my  opinion  it  would  be  unfortunate  if  the  City 
should  neglect  this  opportunity  to  provide  for  a  really 
splendid  yachting  basin  and  site  for  the  housing  of  its 
boat  houses.  If  something  of  the  kind  now  suggested 
is  not  done  it  will  mean  that  sooner  or  later  the  Federal 
Goverimient  will  prohibit  the  anchorage  of  small  boats 
in  their  present  location  and  that  a  large  and  important 
field  of  recreation  will  be  denied  to  the  public. 

As  already  pointed  out,  the  City  will  agree,  as  part 
of  the  settlement,  to  sell  certain  fees  and  easements  of 
waterfront  property  to  the  Railroad.  This  proposition 
has  been  received  with  a  certain  amount  of  criticism,  the 
statement  being  made  that  it  is  a  reversal  of  a  long- 
established  and  wise  City  policy  which  has  consistently 
and  progressively  provided  for  the  gradual  municipali- 
zation of  the  City's  waterfront.  If  the  transaction  con- 
templated the  turning-over  to  the  Railroad  Company 
of  shore  front  and  land  under  water  which  could  be 
advantageously  used  for  general  commercial  purposes 
and  if  it  did  not  at  the  same  time  carry  with  it  a  transfer 
to  the  City  of  New  York  of  title  to  waterfront  property 
far  better  suited  for  general  civic  purposes,  this  criticism 
would  be  valid.     There  are  two  important  sections  in 

68 


which  the  question  of  alienation  of  the  City's  shore 
front  and  land  under  water  is  involved. 

The  first  is  in  connection  with  the  railroad  yard  be- 
tween 59th  street  and  72nd  street.  As  already  noted, 
the  City  will  permit  the  Railroad  Company  to  purchase 
the  pier  structure  in  the  line  of  59th  street,  together 
with  the  42,000  square  feet  of  land  under  water  which 
it  actually  covers.  This  pier  is  now  occupied  by  the 
New  York  Central  Railroad  under  lease  and  could  not 
be  profitably  used  by  any  other  tenant.  The  City  of 
New  York  does  not  own  the  bulkheads  either  to  the 
north  or  to  the  south. 

The  Railroad  Company  is  to  pay  for  the  land  under 
water  at  the  rate  of  $4  a  square  foot,  which  is  the  figure 
fixed  by  the  City's  appraiser,  and  $250,000  for  the  pier 
itself.  This  pier  was  built  in  1901  at  a  cost  to  the  City 
of  $256,394.88,  so  that  there  is  written  off  for  deprecia- 
tion, for  a  period  of  over  fifteen  years,  $6,394.88.  The 
City  also  is  to  cede  to  the  Railroad  land  under  water 
in  the  beds  of  discontinued  streets  between  60th  and  63d 
streets,  and  between  64th  and  65th  streets.  There  is 
also  to  be  ceded  to  the  Company  land  under  water  in 
13th  Avenue,  a  part  of  which  lies  outside  of  the  pierhead 
line  established  by  the  Secretary  of  War  and  also  an 
irregular-shaped  piece  between  59th  street  and  70th 
street,  almost  all  of  which  is  outside  of  the  Government 
pierhead  line.  In  other  words,  the  sales  of  City-owned 
property  are  very  largely  of  parcels  which  are  outshore 
of  the  Government  bulkhead  line  and  much  of  which 
is  even  outshore  of  the  pierhead  line.  It  may  be  added, 
for  those  who  are  not  entirely  famihar  with  the  matter, 
that  harbor  lines  are  established  by  the  Secretary  of 
War,  the  bulkhead  line  being  the  point  to  which  it  is 

69 


permitted  to  make  solid  fill  and  the  pierhead  line  being 
the  limit  for  encroachment  upon  the  navigable  stream 
by  the  construction  of  piers.  The  land  under  water 
in  this  yard  sold  by  the  City  is  entirely  useless  for  gen- 
eral port  development  or  for  lease  to  any  interest  except 
the  railroad.  On  the  other  hand,  as  already  noted,  the 
City  is  acquiring,  between  70th  street  and  72nd  street, 
254,430  square  feet  of  land  under  water,  together  with 
bulkhead  area  400x40  feet.  The  use  which  it  is  pro- 
posed to  make  of  this  property  has  already  been  fully 
explained. 

The  second  important  waterfront  transaction  is  in 
connection  with  the  improvement  of  the  Manhattan- 
ville  yard  of  the  railroad  north  of  135th  street.  Here, 
instead  of  a  reduction  in  waterfront  holdings,  the  City 
will  actually  acquire  the  fee  to  approximately  1,400 
linear  feet  of  additional  frontage.  This  will  leave  the 
Railroad  Company  without  fee  ownership  in  any  prop- 
erty between  135th  street  and  153rd  street,  directly  in 
connection  with  the  Hudson  river.  It  is  proposed  to 
grant  to  the  Company  easement  rights  in  the  outshore 
76  feet  of  the  proposed  new  marginal  way  between 
135th  street  and  141st  street.  The  City  has  insisted 
upon  an  easement  rather  than  a  fee  in  this  section,  so 
as  to  make  it  impossible  for  the  Company  to  build  piers 
and  float  bridges,  which  would  be  a  serious  detriment  to 
property  on  Riverside  Drive.  The  use  which  the  Dock 
Department  proposes  for  the  land  under  water  acquired 
from  the  Railroad  Company  between  143rd  street  and 
153rd  street  has  already  been  fully  explained. 

The  only  other  point  where  it  is  proposed  to  cede  a 
substantial  amount  of  land  under  water  is  in  the  Bor- 
ough of  The  Bronx  directly  north  of  the  Harlem  Ship 

70 


Canal.  At  this  point  the  plans  call  for  the  acquisition 
by  the  Railroad  Company  of  168,458  square  feet  of  land, 
practically  all  of  which  is  covered  by  water,  extending 
a  short  distance  along  the  north  shore  of  the  Ship  Canal 
and  along  the  Hudson  river  directly  north  of  the  Canal. 
This  property  is  so  located  that  no  economical  use  could 
be  made  of  it  for  the  general  development  of  the  Bronx 
waterfront.  It  is  located  at  the  base  of  the  high  pro- 
montory forming  the  River  dale  section  of  the  Borough 
and  it  is  difficult  to  see  what  type  of  commercial  develop- 
ment could  be  placed  at  this  point  to  advantage. 

There  is  a  certain  amoimt  of  misunderstanding  as  to 
the  incidental  riparian  rights,  if  any,  which  the  Railroad 
Company  will  secure  through  the  fact  that  in  certain 
places  its  right  of  way  will  be  directly  contiguous  to  the 
Hudson  river.  The  fear  has  been  expressed  that  it 
might  be  possible  under  these  circumstances  for  the 
Company  to  build  piers  and  float  bridges.  There  will 
be  included  in  the  contract  between  the  Company  and 
the  City  and  in  the  various  deeds  an  express  denial  of 
any  such  riparian  rights,  except  in  the  60th  street  yard 
area.  The  Railroad  Company  is  entirely  agreeable  to 
this  provision  and  has  already  formally  and  officially  so 
notified  the  City  authorities. 


71 


THE  EFFECT  OF  THE  PLANS  UPON  THE 
STREET  AND  PARK  SYSTEMS 

A  S  has  already  been  pointed  out,  most  of  the  popular 
'^^  demand  for  changes  in  the  railroad  has  been  cen- 
tered upon  the  removal  of  operation  across  and  along 
public  streets  at  grade.  This  has  undoubtedly  been  the 
underlying  reason  for  the  legislation  which  has  been 
passed  from  time  to  time,  including  the  statute  under 
which  the  Board  of  Estimate  and  Apportionment  is  now 
acting.  This  purpose  is  admirably  accomplished  in  the 
present  plans.  Grade  crossings  are  removed  at  Dyck- 
man  street,  West  158th  street,  various  streets  crossing 
the  Harlem  Valley,  West  96th  street  and  West  79th 
street.  The  dangerous  and  inconvenient  operation 
through  the  streets  and  avenues  south  of  59th  street 
will  be  entirely  discontinued. 

In  addition,  a  number  of  streets  will  be  improved 
and  others  which  are  now  practically  closed  will  be 
made  available  for  public  use.  West  145th  street  will 
be  carried  across  the  railroad  right  of  way,  giving  access 
to  the  important  waterfront  improvement  planned 
north  of  143rd  street.  The  grade  of  West  96th  street, 
which  is  now  extremely  heavy,  will  be  greatly  improved 
by  the  flattening-out  of  the  street  between  the  present 
bridge  carrying  Riverside  Drive  and  the  westerly  side 
of  the  railroad  right  of  way.  A  new  viaduct  will  be 
available  across  the  railroad  yard  in  the  line  of  West 
70th  street,  the  uses  of  which  have  already  been  ex- 

78 


plained  in  detail.     All  streets  running  through  the  30th 

street  yard,  which  are  now  entirely  closed  and  covered 

with  tracks,  will  be  opened  through  on  two  levels,  as 
already   explained,   greatly   improving   access   to   the 

waterfront  in  this  territory. 

In  addition  to  these  changes  the  Railroad  will  grant 
to  the  City  the  right  to  cover  its  main  line  tracks  along 
the  entire  right  of  way  north  of  72nd  street,  in 
addition  to  the  covers  now  specifically  provided  for 
in  the  agreement.  An  important  waterfront  street 
has  been  considered  to  extend  either  between  155th 
street  or  158th  street  and  a  point  near  177th 
street.  A  street  or  parkway  may  also  be  built 
north  of  Fort  Washington  Park,  extending  north 
to  a  connection  with  Dyckman  street.  The  City  will 
reserve  the  right  in  each  case  to  use  the  undersides  of 
the  roofing  for  all  ordinary  street  uses,  including  sewers 
and  various  public  service  conduits. 

The  streets  which  it  is  proposed  to  close  under  the 
plan  are  in  almost  every  case  simply  map  streets,  which 
are  not  actually  physically  open  and  which  are  therefore 
not  available  for  public  use  at  the  present  time.  They 
are  almost  without  exception  streets  which  could  serve 
no  important  public  purpose.  A  single  block  of  Spring 
street  and  Charlton  street,  between  West  and  Washing- 
ton streets,  will  be  discontinued  and  closed  in  order  to 
permit  the  proper  development  of  the  southern  terminal. 
The  closing  of  these  streets  will  be  unimportant.  There 
is  ample  accommodation  for  traffic  on  Canal  street  to 
the  south  and  on  the  various  streets  to  the  north,  the 
distance  between  Canal  street  and  King  street,  the  first 
open  street  north  of  Canal  street  under  the  new  plan, 
being  only  about  one  thousand  feet. 

78 


As  part  of  the  settlement  the  Company  will  aban- 
don its  present  street  surface  occupation,  including  its 
franchise  for  the  maintenance  of  trackage  through 
Canal  street  between  West  street  and  Hudson  street, 
and  Hudson  street  from  Canal  street  to  North  Moore 
street. 

A  great  deal  has  been  said  in  the  various  discussions 
of  this  matter  concerning  its  effect  upon  the  public 
parks.  As  already  pointed  out,  this  is  an  important 
consideration,  but  in  the  last  analysis  collateral  and  sub- 
ordinate to  the  major  considerations  which  have  already 
been  discussed.  At  the  same  time  the  facts  are  that 
there  will  be  a  very  great  improvement  in  important 
City  parks  and  the  opportunity  created  for  a  new  and 
beautiful  park  at  the  northern  end  of  Manhattan  Island. 

As  already  noted,  the  plan  of  rounding-out  the 
waterfront  park  system  of  Manhattan  through  the  crea- 
tion of  a  new  park  on  the  westerly  slope  of  Inwood  Hill 
has  been  under  consideration  by  City  authorities  for  a 
number  of  years,  antedating  by  a  considerable  period 
the  present  negotiations  with  the  New  York  Central 
Railroad.  It  is  generally  agreed  that  Inwood  Hill  pos- 
sesses natural  beauties  which  should  be  preserved  for 
the  enjoyment  of  our  citizens  and  which  can  only  be 
made  permanent  through  incorporation  in  the  park  sys- 
tem. To  establish  such  a  park  without  removing  the 
railroad  tracks  from  the  waterfront  would  be  to  greatly 
impair  its  beauty  and  usefulness,  and  the  insistence  upon 
the  tunneling  of  the  hill  for  the  new  right  of  way  has 
opened  the  way  for  the  accomplishment  of  this  very 
desirable  result.  It  would  be  infinitely  better  from  a 
railroad  operating  standpoint  to  leave  the  tracks  in  their 

74 


present  location  uncovered  and  the  willingness  of  the 
Company  to  spend  the  large  sum  necessary  to  carry 
out  the  tunnel  treatment  is  a  direct  contribution  by  the 
Company  to  a  matter  of  purely  civic  improvement  and 
is  a  part  of  the  compensation  which  the  City  is  securing 
for  its  willingness  to  permit  the  expansion  of  the  track- 
age in  the  manner  proposed. 

The  treatment  of  the  trackage  through  Fort  Wash- 
ington Park  is  a  matter  which  received  the  most  de- 
tailed study  and  attention  before  determining  upon  the 
solution  proposed  in  the  present  plans.  It  was  sug- 
gested in  the  1913  report  of  the  Board  of  Estimate  Com- 
mittee that  the  present  right  of  way  be  shifted  substan- 
tially to  the  eastward  and  that  the  present  rock  cut  be 
abandoned.  This  solution  would  have  freed  a  sub- 
stantial amount  of  waterfront  from  railroad  occupation 
but  would  have  meant  that  a  large  number  of  very  beau- 
tiful trees  would  have  been  destroyed  in  the  building  of 
the  new  right  of  way.  Subsequent  study  convinced  the 
present  Committee  of  the  Board  that  a  more  satisfactory 
treatment  could  be  secured  by  the  widening  of  the 
present  rock  cut  and  the  roofing  of  the  tracks  with  a 
structure  sufficiently  heavy  to  permit  a  substantial  fill 
almost  to  the  crest  of  the  railroad  depression.  Part  of 
the  park  extends  both  north  and  south  of  the  cut  and  the 
topography  is  not  such  as  lends  itself  to  the  covering  of 
the  tracks  without  substantial  changes  in  surface.  It 
did  not  seem  wise  at  the  present  time  to  provide  for 
this  roofing  but  the  right  is  reserved  to  the  City  at  any 
time  in  the  future  to  cover  these  tracks  in  such  manner 
as  may  be  desired. 

Along  the  Riverside  Drive  extension  from  a  point 

75 


between  134th  Street  and  135th  Street  and  extending 
to  a  point  near  152nd  Street  the  Railroad  Company  will 
build  as  part  of  the  settlement  a  steel- and-concrete  cover 
extending  over  the  major  part  of  the  main  line  tracks. 
The  Company  will  build  the  necessary  retaining  walls 
and  the  City  will  be  in  a  position  to  fill  in  between  the 
present  grassy  slopes  and  the  westerly  edge  of  the  new 
cover  and  park  the  entire  area.  There  has  been  consid- 
erable demand  that  this  roof  be  extended  to  cover  the 
entire  yard  area,  or  at  least  that  the  right  be  reserved 
to  the  City  to  cover  it  at  some  time  in  the  future.  The 
main  difficulty  in  this  matter  is  that  the  river  bottom 
outshore  of  the  section  which  it  is  now  proposed  to  roof 
is  such  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  pro\'ide  founda- 
tions except  at  enormous  expense.  The  experience  of 
the  Department  of  Docks  and  Ferries  in  the  construc- 
tion of  piers  north  of  129th  Street  has  shown  that  there 
is  a  large  amount  of  sinking  due  to  the  insecure 
character  of  the  soft  silt  which  forms  the  river  bottom 
in  this  locality.  This  sinking  is  not  serious  in  the  case 
of  piers,  but  it  would  completely  destroy  a  steel  and 
concrete  roof  such  as  would  be  necessary  for  the  carry- 
ing of  a  park  structure.  The  engineering  advisors  of 
the  Committee  also  report  that  the  supports  for  a  roof 
would  reduce  the  yard  area  by  about  ten  per  cent,  and 
would  make  it  very  difficult  to  operate  with  any  degree 
of  efficiency. 

Riverside  Park  is  the  most  important  of  those  af- 
fected by  the  improvement.  The  report  of  1913  recom- 
mended the  widening  of  the  railroad  trackage  to  the 
west  and  the  covering  over  of  the  old  and  new  right  of 
way  from  122nd  Street  to  72nd  Street.  This  would 
have  permitted  the  creation  of  a  waterfront  esplanade 

76 


between  the  present  Riverside  Park  and  the  river.  It 
was  a  form  of  treatment  which  was  very  much  less  ex- 
pensive than  that  now  proposed  but  it  was  recognized 
that  it  would  change  the  character  of  Riverside  Park. 
In  arriving  at  the  present  proposed  solution  an  effort 
was  made  to  so  locate  the  railroad  that  the  Park  could 
be  carried  over  the  roof  in  such  a  manner  that  it  would 
not  materially  change  the  existing  topography.  Various 
studies  were  prepared  upon  diflferent  locations.  The 
one  finally  selected  was  chosen  because  it  provided  for 
the  smallest  disturbance  of  the  Park  and  the  most  sat- 
isfactory restoration  of  natural  slopes.  It  is  estimated 
that  the  treatment  proposed  will  cost  over  ten  million 
dollars,  which  the  Railroad  has  been  compelled  to  as- 
sume as  part  of  the  compensation  for  the  new  rights 
granted  to  it.  In  order  to  visualize  the  Park  after  the 
proposed  changes,  the  Board  of  Estimate  and  Appor- 
tionment caused  a  model  to  be  made  on  a  scale  of  one 
inch  to  twenty  feet  showing  the  entire  section  from 
72nd  Street  to  153th  Street.  The  technical  accuracy 
of  this  model  is  certified  to  by  its  makers.  It  completely 
bears  out  the  statements  made  in  the  various  reports  of 
the  Board  of  Estimate  Committee  that  it  will  be  prac- 
tically impossible  after  the  completion  of  the  work  to 
trace  any  substantial  portion  of  the  railroad  right  of 
way  from  an  observation  of  surface  conditions.  The 
model  also  shows  very  clearly  the  impracticability  of 
trying  to  follow  the  line  of  Riverside  Drive,  the  sug- 
gestion made  by  certain  citizens.  Not  only  is  this  route 
so  crooked  that  it  could  not  be  adopted  without  passing 
under  private  property  and  encroaching  upon  portions 
of  Riverside  Park  but  it  also  should  be  remembered 
that  such  a  line  could  not  be  built  without  greatly  dis- 

77 


turbing   the   surface   conditions   and   interfering   with 
traffic  upon  the  Drive  for  a  very  substantial  period. 

The  surface  treatment  of  the  restored  Park  is  shown 
on  the  model  according  to  plans  prepared  by  the  De- 
partment of  Parks,  and  shows  the  possibility  of  estab- 
lishing important  playgrounds  and  adding  to  the  walks 
and  other  park  facilities.  It  is  not  necessary  that  this 
exact  treatment  shall  be  followed.  The  Railroad  Com- 
pany has,  however,  agreed  to  pay  $300,000  for  park 
restoration,  which  is  the  estimated  cost  of  completing 
the  improvements  shown  upon  the  model,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  planting.  The  Railroad  Company  has  also 
agreed  that  it  will  contract  that  within  a  reasonable 
time,  to  be  named  in  the  contract,  changes  may  be 
made  in  the  topography,  with  the  stipulation  that  if 
these  changes  involve  a  net  additional  cost  in  the  sup- 
porting structure  that  the  City  will  bear  the  increase. 
The  railroad  cover  is  designed  to  bear  a  uniform  weight 
of  three  feet  of  earth.  There  has  been  a  considerable 
amount  of  discussion  as  to  whether  this  is  sufficient. 
As  it  is  a  purely  technical  matter,  I  will  quote  from 
a  report  made  by  Mr.  Charles  W.  Leavitt,  civil  engineer 
and  landscape  architect  of  undoubted  standing  and  ex- 
perience. This  report  was  made  to  the  New  York 
Central  Company  imder  date  of  May  8,  1916,  in  re- 
sponse to  their  request  for  an  unbiased  opinion  upon  the 
matter.    Mr.  Leavitt  stated,  in  part : 

"Riverside  Park  is  a  partially  developed  city 
park,  built  upon  the  steep  eastern  bank  of  the 
Hudson  River,  extending  from  72d  street  north 
in  New  York  City.  Owing  to  the  construction 
of  streets  and  houses  to  the  east  of  this  park,  the 
j  rain  and  snow  in  that  area,  instead  of  soaking 

78 


into  the  ground  and  percolating  gradually  to 
and  through  the  park  to  the  river,  is  cut  off  and 
conducted  by  roofs,  paving,  pipes,  etc.,  into 
sewers  and  drains.  On  this  account,  there  can 
be,  in  the  park  area,  no  moisture  other  than  that 
which  falls  directly  on  it  and  which  is  available 
for  that  area  only  before  run-off  or  evaporation 
takes  place,  and,  because  of  the  paths,  drives, 
etc.,  much  of  this  water  is  carried  away  by  drains, 
pipes  and  other  artificial  means.  While  this,  in 
some  ways,  is  desirable,  as  it  keeps  the  paths  dry 
and  prevents  washouts,  on  the  other  hand,  it 
tends  towards  dry  and  sterile  soil  conditions, 
which  are  still  further  aggravated  by  the  fact 
that  the  land  slopes  in  such  a  manner  as  to  pre- 
sent an  almost  right  angle  front  to  the  direct 
rays  of  the  afternoon  sun.  The  leakage  from 
gas  mains  in  nearby  streets  is  not  an  advantage 
to  soil  conditions  and  does  not  create  surround- 
ings healthful  for  vegetation." 

"As  to  the  depth  of  soil  in  the  present  park, 
I  find  that  generally  there  is  very  little.  Below 
90th  street,  and  thereabouts,  unless  sonie  pockets 
of  soil  exist  in  the  rock,  or  are  made  by  excava- 
tion, and  suflScient  topsoil  and  moisture  provided, 
it  is  difficult  to  support  anything  but  small  trees, 
shrubbery  and  plants.  In  fact,  there  are  not 
many  large  trees  in  the  park,  excepting  on  the 
lower  slopes  of  the  west  side,  where  some  very 
beautiful  specimens  are  found  growing  upon  rock 
with  but  6  inches  to  3  feet  of  soil  on  its  surface. 
This  soil  is  moistened  by  seepage  from  the  upper, 
eastern  portion  of  the  park,  the  moisture  being 

79 


retained  and  brought  to  the  surface  by  the  rocky 
formation,  thus  making  the  lower,  western  por- 
tion a  more  desirable  location  for  trees  than  is 
the  upper,  eastern  border,  although  the  latter 
has  the  deeper  soil.  In  many  portions  of  the 
park  I  find  not  more  than  a  few  inches  of  top- 
soil  existing,  in  almost  every  case,  upon  rock  or 
a  practically  sterile  subsoil  of  decomposed  mica- 
schist,  which  is  such  a  dense  material  that  it  is 
difficult  for  the  roots  of  trees  to  penetrate  it. 
Very  little  nutriment,  if  any,  is  given  to  the 
trees  by  this  subsoil,  especially  since,  owing  to 
conditions  described  above,  there  is  practically 
no  moisture  supplied  by  it." 

"In  general,  the  plans  contemplate  forming 
a  terrace  or  bench  at  the  lower  portion  and 
under  the  toe  of  the  natural  slope,  immediately 
above  the  River,  the  tracks  to  pass  beneath  this 
bench,  the  roof  of  the  bench  to  be  of  concrete, 
waterproofed,  and  such  waterproofing  to  have, 
perhaps,  a  protecting  covering  of  concrete;  su- 
perimposed upon  this  structure,  there  is  pro- 
vision made  for  at  least  3  feet  of  soil,  excepting 
in  the  case  of  walks  and  paths,  where  you  have 
provided  for  a  cushion  of  2  feet  of  material. 
There  is  no  question  but  that  2  feet  would  be 
ample  depth  for  the  cushion  of  filling  under  such 
walks  and  bridle  paths  as  might  be  constructed 
on  this  terrace,  and  the  problem,  therefore,  seems 
to  resolve  itself  into  the  question  as  to  whether 
or  not  shrubs,  trees  and  other  plants  can  be 
planted  about  these  walks  and  bridle  paths,  and 
in  proximity  to  them,  so  that  such  plants  will 

80 


grow  and  form  a  beautiful  and  natural  appear- 


ance." 


**I  feel  confident  that  there  can  be  created  a 
condition  which  will  be  superior  to  that  now  ex- 
isting along  the  western  borders  of  the  present 
park,  and  that  there  can  be  planted  in  this  new 
portion  all  the  vegetation  necessary  to  make  a 
park,  with  the  assurance  that  it  will  grow  and 
thrive,  and  be  satisfactory  in  every  way." 

"It  is  my  understanding  that  you  contem- 
plate a  minimum  depth  of  3  feet  of  soil  for  the 
planting  areas  and  that,  in  many  places  over  the 
tunnels  this  depth  will  be  somewhat  greater. 
Also,  I  understand  that  the  Park  Department 
may  desire  to  change  the  location  of  the  walks 
and  paths  indicated  on  the  present  plan  and 
that  you  will  make  provision  in  the  supporting 
structure  so  that,  should  such  change  be  made, 
there  can  be  at  least  3  feet  of  filling  at  any  place 
on  the  roof.  This  would  provide  sufficient  depth 
for  a  material  which  would  act  as  a  mulch  or 
baffle  to  hold  back  the  moisture  that  would  fall 
directly  on  it,  or  seep  from  the  upper  portion 
of  the  park.  Such  a  topsoil  would  act  as  a  sub- 
stitute for  a  forest  floor  in  nature,  retaining  in 
suspense  this  natural  rainfall  and  seepage  for  a 
length  of  time  sufficient  to  enable  it  to  be  ab- 
sorbed by  the  vegetation,  and  creating  a  con- 
dition superior  to  that  now  existing  over  very 
considerable  portions  of  the  park.  In  this  ma- 
terial can  be  planted  all  the  vegetation  neces- 
sary to  a  park  of  high  order." 

81 


There  also  appears  to  be  a  certain  amount  of  mis- 
understanding as  to  the  effect  wliich  the  proposed  park 
treatment  will  have  in  obstructing  the  river  view  from 
the  Drive.  The  model  and  also  perspective  drawings 
which  have  been  prepared  by  the  Committee  show  con- 
clusively that  at  no  point,  except  in  the  direct  line  of 
79th  Street,  will  a  view  of  the  Hudson  be  shut  off  by 
the  treatment  proposed.  A  curious  criticism  has  been 
made  of  the  plan  in  that  it  does  not  provide  for  the  com- 
pletion of  Riverside  Park  between  the  railroad  right  of 
way  and  the  river.  This  objection  is  of  course  entirely 
unreasonable  in  that  it  is  a  matter  with  which  the  Rail- 
road Company  has  absolutely  nothing  to  do  and  is 
work  wliich  the  City  must  undertake  as  part  of  its  gen- 
eral park  improvement.  There  can,  of  course,  be  no 
present  appropriation  for  this  work  for  the  reason  that 
it  cannot  possibly  be  undertaken  economically  until 
after  the  completion  of  the  railroad  improvement.  The 
Board  of  Estimate  Committee  has  pointed  out  that 
with  the  completion  of  this  improvement  there  will  un- 
doubtedly be  a  very  proper  demand  for  the  finishing 
of  the  outshore  portion  of  the  Park  and  that  the  City 
can  look  forward  now  to  meeting  that  obligation  at  an 
early  date. 


82 


ssa 


VI 

FINANCIAL    TERMS     OF    THE     SETTLE- 
MENT 

T  T  must  be  clear  from  the  foregoing  that  the  settle- 
merit  must  reflect  very  greatly  to  the  advantage  of 
the  commerce  of  the  City,  as  well  as  to  the  advantage  of 
the  railroad  in  its  ability  to  attract  a  largely  increased 
tonnage  through  the  improvement  of  its  tracks  and 
terminals.  There  remains  to  consider  the  financial  side 
of  the  proposed  settlement. 

Apart  from  the  very  large  capital  expenditure 
which  the  Railroad  Company  will  be  called  upon  to 
make  to  carry  out  the  improvement,  as  has  already  been 
indicated,  the  plan  calls  for  the  spending  of  large  sums 
at  various  points  for  matters  which  are  primarily  that 
of  municipal  rather  than  railroad  importance.  These 
amounts  constitute  the  price  which  the  Railroad  is  pay- 
ing for  the  willingness  of  the  City  of  New  York  to 
grant  its  permission  for  the  expansion  of  the  Railroad's 
facihties.  The  various  estimated  amounts  which  must 
be  spent  by  the  Railroad  for  these  municipal  purposes 
may  be  summarized  as  follows : 

Inwood  Hill  Tunnel $1,492,000 

Fort  Washington  Park 440,000 

Riverside  Park 10,582,000 

Manhattan  Main  Tracks  Cover 2,114,000 

Part  of  Construction  of  Municipal  Tracks 

on  Marginal  Way  below  60th  street 80,000 

Total  cost  for  municipal  benefits . .   $14,708,000 

83 


As  has  already  been  stated,  there  are  at  various 
points  sales  and  purchases  of  real  estate  between  the 
City  and  the  Railroad,  the  Railroad  acquiring  such  fees 
and  easements  owned  by  the  City  as  are  necessary  to 
complete  its  improvement  as  projected,  and  the  City 
acquiring  various  parcels  of  upland  and  waterfront 
needed  to  improve  its  park  system  and  its  waterfront 
holdings. 

The  real  estate  involved  was  appraised  for  the  City 
by  the  Real  Estate  Expert  of  the  Department  of 
Finance.     His  figures  showed  the  following  results; 

Lands  and  easements  sold  by  the  City  to 

the  Railroad  Company $11,094,381 

Lands  and  easements  sold  by  the  Rail- 
road Company  to  the  City 4,984,482 

Balance  in  favor  of  the  City $6,109,899 

The  difference  between  $14,708,000  and  $6,109,899, 
or  $8,598,101,  is  the  net  amount  which  the  Railroad 
is  paying  in  the  form  of  municipal  improvements  for 
its  enlarged  privileges,  over  and  above  the  actual  value 
of  the  real  estate  purchased  from  the  City  of  New  York. 

The  real  estate  figures  of  the  Comptroller's  Expert 
were  carefully  examined  and  checked  by  the  firm  of 
George  R.  Read  &  Co.,  which  was  employed  by  the 
Board  of  Estimate  and  Apportionment  for  the  purpose. 
The  differences  between  the  figures  of  this  firm  and  the 
Real  Estate  Expert  of  the  Department  of  Finance  were 
entirely  negligible. 

In  view  of  all  of  these  facts  it  would  appear  that  the 
City  of  New  York  is  securing  a  most  advantageous  bar- 
gain in  setthng  the  West  Side  problem  upon  the  terms 

84 


proposed.  Certainly  the  indirect  advantages  accruing 
to  the  commerce  of  the  Port  would  alone  be  more  than 
sufficient  to  justify  its  adoption  even  without  the  di- 
rect advantages  which  have  been  secured. 


M.  B.  Brown  Printing  &  Binding  Co. 
New  York 


s 


